Blindsided
by Flynne
Summary: Reeling from an unexpected tragedy, Bo and Luke learn than an old enemy has targeted them and is bent on revenge. Sequel to BTO.
1. Impact

– **Chapter One – **

"**Impact"**

**Howdy, y'all, and welcome back to Hazzard County! If any of you were in the area 'bout eight months ago, you might remember the wild happenings that ol' Bo an' Luke got mixed up in. They got tangled up with A.J. Brock, a real nasty gambler, no thanks to Boss Hogg. But thanks to their new family member—that'd be the four-legged feller—things worked out pretty good in the end.**

**Right now, it looks like you picked a good time to come back for a visit. Even with all the day-to-day trouble that follows the Duke boys like a lost pup, things have been pretty quiet 'round here for a while. 'Course, y'all know what _that_ means…it ain't gonna _stay_ that way for too much longer.**

Jesse Duke shut off his truck, carrying his keys in one hand and the mail in the other as he ambled toward the house. He was recovering from his most recent encounter with Emma Tizdale and focused on flipping through the envelopes, so he didn't hear the unusual commotion from the house until he was almost at the door. When he finally noticed the noise from inside, his bushy white eyebrows drew together in a puzzled frown, and he stepped close to the open window and peered curiously inside.

Luke was dodging around the furniture playing keep-away while Fender chased after him, barking excitedly as he jumped against the young man's legs. The dog's tail was wagging so fast it looked like a golden blur behind him. Luke darted around the couch and dropped to his hands and knees to let the dog catch him. He grabbed the furry maniac in a headlock and wrestled with him on the rug. Fender growled playfully, swatting at Luke's head with his paws. Luke just held on tighter and growled right back.

Then Jesse noticed a flicker of movement from the hallway, and he saw a hint of blond hair as Bo cautiously peeked around the corner. The old man could read his nephew's face like a book, and the mischievous gleam in the sparkling blue eyes was a dead giveaway to what was about to happen next. Jesse smiled, but rolled his eyes heavenward and prayed that nothing important would get broken.

"Yeeeehaaaaww!" Bo flung himself across the room and pounced on his cousin, grabbing Luke in a bear hug as they rolled on the floor. Fender squirmed out of Luke's arms and spun around, barking madly and bouncing around the pair of cousins. Jesse swallowed his laughter and watched in silence while he listened to the verbal sparring from his nephews as they tussled on the floor.

"Oof! _Geez_, Bo…!"

"Ha HA! You never saw it comin'!"

"Ain't you a little big to go tacklin' people?"

"If you can't take it, old man, just say so!"

The dig was enough to make Luke switch tactics and go on the offensive. "I'll 'old man' you! You ain't beat me at wrestling yet, and it ain't about to start now."

"Cousin, you—unh!—you are gonna eat those words!" Bo scrambled to his hands and knees and lunged forward, grabbing Luke in a headlock just as Luke had been pinning Fender to the floor a moment earlier. "All right, Luke, say 'uncle'!"

"The only man I say 'uncle' to is Uncle Jesse!" Luke shot back. He threw his body sideways and knocked Bo over, but Bo still had a firm grip on him and the two cousins fell over in a heap.

"Ain't no gettin' away from me!" Bo said with a triumphant laugh.

Luke grinned slyly. "Oh, yeah?"

Bo suddenly yelped and squirmed, scooting as far away from his cousin as he could without losing his hold. "Hey, that's playin' dirty!"

"Nope, it's called takin' advantage of your enemy's weakness! It ain't _my_ fault you're ticklish." Luke reached out again and squeezed Bo's ribs with his fingertips. Bo held him for a moment longer, but when Luke kept at him he was forced to let go. Luke never left a battle half-finished, though, and he zeroed in on his youngest cousin. Fender jumped on top of both of them, and a moment later the couch tipped over with a _whump!_ as the tangle of wrestlers bumped into it.

Bo and Luke rolled away from each other and sat up, disheveled and laughing as they surveyed the damage.

"Woops."

"You done it this time, Luke."

"Me? Hey, you started it!"

"Yeah, and I was about to finish it."

"Sure you were—and _I _ain't never got a speeding ticket!"

Fender was still wound up and ready for more, and he seized Bo's t-shirt in his teeth and started tugging.

"Whoa, now!" Bo reached behind him and grabbed hold of Fender's bright orange collar, pulling the dog forward onto his lap. "Don't rip that, boy! Daisy ain't gonna be happy if she has to fix that."

"Well, you got nobody to blame but yourself," Luke said smugly, giving Bo's shoulder a firm nudge with his fist. "You should know not to fight somebody better'n you."

"You know what they say—pride goeth right before you get your tail kicked," Bo retorted, giving Luke a little shove in return.

Jesse could see that another wrestling match was imminent. As much as he enjoyed watching his nephews horse around, he preferred that they do it somewhere outside. So he chose that moment to bang open the back door and stomp into the house.

"All right, what's all this monkeyshines?" he demanded. Both boys jumped and exchanged a sheepish look as their uncle stared down at them with his hands on his hips.

"Uh—well, we's just, um…re-arranging the furniture, Uncle Jesse," Bo said brightly.

"Yeah, we thought it was time for a change," Luke said, climbing to his feet. He reached out so Bo could grab onto his hand and stand up.

Jesse narrowed his faded blue eyes at them. "Do you boys remember how old you are?"

"Ummm…old enough to pick up the couch?" Bo guessed, grabbing hold of one of the arms. Luke stepped around to the other side and the two of them righted the well-worn piece of furniture.

"Old enough to know better than to knock it over in the first place," Jesse corrected sternly. "Is this what happens when Daisy and I leave you two alone?"

Luke stifled a laugh as he glanced at his cousin. "Not _all_ the time." Bo snickered.

Jesse wondered what went on the _rest_ of the time when he wasn't around, but his nephews looked sufficiently apologetic (if you looked past the half-amused, half-guilty expressions on their faces) so he decided to let the matter drop and address the real reason he had hurried back from town.

"Well now, if you boys are done tearin' up the house, I got a job for you."

"What'cha need, Uncle Jesse?" Luke asked, straightening his shirt.

"I ran into Kelly Tompkins in town this afternoon and she asked me if you two wouldn't mind doin' her a favor. She really appreciated the way you boys have been helpin' over the past couple weeks, what with Phil laid up, and she wanted to know if you could fix the roof on their house. It weren't in good shape to begin with, and the storm we had last week really tore it up."

"Sure, no problem!" Bo agreed cheerfully. The Tompkinses were a couple in their fifties who had run a small but thriving soybean farm until Phil's leg had been broken when his tractor had overturned a few weeks before. He was coming along fine, but it seemed as if all the little things that could go wrong had happened at once just as soon as he was unable to do anything about it.

"Does she have shingles and everything already out there or do we need to pick it up?" Luke asked, pulling his boots on.

"She said she had everything there. All she needs is for someone to get up on the roof an' take care of it," Jesse replied. "She was just headin' home when I saw her in town, so she should be out there by now. Said since it looks like you might be helpin' her out regular until Phil's back on his feet, she's plannin' on payin' you for your work. You can drop by any time."

"Well, we ain't doin' anything now. What d'you think, Bo?"

"I think 'any time' is right now!" Bo said cheerfully. "Let's hit the road, Cuz!"

"Right behind you," Luke answered, following his cousin to the door.

Fender heard the jingle of car keys immediately and sprang to his feet, chasing eagerly after his two driving buddies. Luke was already inside the General and Bo was about to climb in when he saw the pale gold dog running across the yard toward the car.

"Whoop! Hold it!" Bo burst out. He braced himself and caught the dog in midair as he attempted to leap through the window. The impact of fifty pounds of energetic canine slamming into him knocked him back against the car, and he staggered a bit before he regained his balance. "Sorry there, Fender-bender," he said, letting the dog drop to the ground. "You're gonna have to stay home this time." He looked back toward the house, where his uncle was watching them leave. "Uncle Jesse, can you hold onto him so we can get outta here?"

"Sure thing." Jesse trudged across the yard and stooped to take hold of Fender's collar, gently guiding the disappointed dog away from the General. "How come you're not takin' him with you?"

Bo shrugged. "Well, we tried that last time, but while we was workin' he treed five of their barn cats in their big sycamore out front. He was real proud of himself, but it took almost two hours for Luke and me to get 'em down."

"The cats couldn't get down on their own?" Jesse asked skeptically.

"That's what _I_ thought, but Miz Tompkins said the last time they was treed, they didn't come down for three days, and that was only after Phil had to go up and get 'em. She felt kinda bad about askin' us to go up after 'em, but she didn't have no other way to get 'em down." Bo rolled his eyes. "They may be good mousers, but they ain't too bright."

"They ain't too friendly, neither!" Luke piped up from inside the car. "I still got scratches on my arms where they nailed me."

"Long story short, we don't wanna have to do that again." Bo bent down and gave the half-pricked ears a consoling pat. "Don't worry, boy, me and Luke will take you for a spin next chance we get." He climbed inside the bright orange Charger with his cousin, and with a wave and blast of "Dixie" on the horn, the boys sped out of sight.

**And there they go. Poor Fender's sure missin' out on a good drive. It's a bright sunny day and there ain't nobody chasin' 'em (and hopefully, they ain't gonna have to chase no cats). Nothin' quite like the peace and quiet of the country…there ain't a sound to be heard except the General. Well, if you don't count the noise comin' from inside it. It's supposed to be singin', in case you couldn't tell.**

"'_Oh, Lord, it's hard to be humble when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better lookin' each day!'"_

"'_To know me is to love me—I must be a hell of a man. Oh, Lord, it's hard to be humble but I'm doing the best that I can.'_ Bo, I think you're singin' a little flat."

"You ain't exactly no Mac Davis yourself, bud. Now are we gonna finish the song or not?"

"We'll finish! _'Some folks say that I'm egotistical. Hell, I don't even know what that means. I guess it has something to do with the way that I fill out my skin tight blue jeans.'_"

"Don't look so smug, Luke. _'Oh, Lord, it's hard to be humble when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror 'cause I get better lookin' each day!_'"

"'_To know me is to love me…I must be a hell of a man…'"_

"'…_Oh, Lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doing the best that I can.'"_

"'_We're doin' the best that we can!'"_

**Well, they ain't gonna win no awards for their two-part harmony any time soon, but they sound pretty good for a couple of country boys, don't they?**

Both cousins started laughing when they finished the chorus. A plume of dust floated behind the bright orange car as it cruised easily along the red dirt road. When the road started curving off to the left, Bo went straight, taking the General off-road in the shortcut they usually took to the Tompkins farm.

"I don't know why we always take this way. Ain't this ravine just a little rough on the shocks?" Luke asked as he was jostled against the door.

"Luke, why did we buy these shocks from Cooter if we ain't gonna use 'em?" Bo rolled his eyes. "I think you _are _gettin' old. First I beat you at wrestling, and now you're—"

"Hey, hey, who beat who?" Luke broke in with a laugh. "I had you right where I wanted you!" He reached over and poked his cousin in the side.

"Luke!" Bo twisted in his seat, fighting back a smile as he swatted his cousin's hand away. "I'm drivin'! Danged if you ain't gettin' to be as bad as Daisy." He put both hands on the wheel and looked ahead, focusing on the narrow concrete bridge they were about to pass under.

Luke chuckled and shook his head. "_Nobody's_ as bad as Daisy. I ain't even ticklish and she can _still_ make me squirm. You remember that one time when she—"

**_BAM!_**

Bo yelped in surprise, swerving sharply as something slammed into the front end of the car just as they passed under the bridge. He dimly saw a dark shape go tumbling by his window. It took him only a few seconds to recover and slam on the brakes, bringing the General to a screeching halt in a cloud of dust.

"Luke, you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah...yeah, I'm fine," his startled cousin replied. "What the heck happened?"

"I don't know. I hit somethin', but I don't know what it was. I didn't see a thing."

"We better go check."

"Way ahead of you, Cuz." Bo crawled out of the window and landed lightly on the ground. He took a few steps back the way he had come—then stopped dead in his tracks as the blood drained from his face. "Holy smoke—!" He bolted back to the bridge at a dead run.

Alarmed, Luke hurried to haul himself out of the car. He felt his body grow cold as he saw his cousin bending over a long, dark shape on the ground. He raced back to join Bo, but no sooner had he arrived than Bo stumbled back, blue eyes wide with horror.

"He's dead!" he choked out. "Luke, he's dead!"

"_What?_" Luke skidded to a stop beside his cousin, looking down in disbelief at the twisted shape of a man lying in the brush by the side of the road. "Oh, my Lord..."

Bo started to shake. "Luke, I killed him!" he gasped. "I—I didn't even see him!" His breath came in ragged bursts, harsh and loud in the quiet of the back country.

Luke was just as frightened as his cousin, but Bo's panic was filling the air like a choking fog and he knew he needed to bring the situation under control—and fast. He reached back into long-buried memories and pulled up the flat feeling of detachment that he had learned when he'd been in the Marines, wrapping it around his mind like armor. He forced himself to look away from the body and put his hands on Bo's shoulders, giving him a sharp shake. "Bo…Bo, snap out of it! I know you're scared, but you gotta calm down. Bo, _look at me!_"

The firm command got Bo's attention and he swallowed hard, looking down into Luke's face. He looked lost and terrified, but that just gave Luke more determination to push his own feelings aside and bring things into focus. He took hold of Bo's arm and gently tugged him away, close to the car. "Come on. Sit down before you fall down. You're white as a sheet."

Bo let Luke guide him down, dropping cross-legged in the dust with his head in his hands. "What am I gonna do?" he panted. "Luke…I killed someone!"

The high, unnatural tremor in Bo's voice cut Luke like a knife. He sat down next to him, wrapping his arm tightly around his shoulders. He could feel Bo's heart pounding like mad inside his chest.

"Quit sayin' that," he said, trying hard to keep his voice from shaking and praying that Bo couldn't hear it. "Just—just calm down. It ain't your fault…he came outta nowhere. _I_ didn't see him either. He stepped right out from behind the bridge."

"What am I gonna do?" Bo asked again.

"I'll tell ya," Luke answered. "You ain't gonna do anything. I'm gonna call Enos and have him come out here. We'll have him sort things out."

Bo squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed convulsively. "I feel sick."

Luke patted him on the back. "Quit breathin' so hard. Take it easy, all right? I'm gonna get up and call Enos on the CB. It's gonna be okay, Bo. You hear me? It'll be okay." Luke hastily stood and grabbed the mike from the car, trying to shake the ugly feeling that he had just lied to his cousin.

"This is Luke Duke callin' Hazzard Two. Enos, you got your ears on? Come back, it's an emergency."

The short pause of radio silence seemed like an eternity before Luke heard Enos' concerned voice coming over the airwaves. _"I read you, Luke. What's the trouble?"_

"Enos, I need you to come out to the bridge over Cottonwood Road. We've had an accident."

"_An accident? Y'all okay?"_

"We're fine, but…" Luke took an unsteady breath. "We hit somebody."

"_Possum on a gumbush!"_ the deputy exclaimed. _"Are they hurt bad?"_

"He's—he's dead, Enos."

"_Possum on…"_ Enos' stunned voice died away. Over the CB, Luke could hear Enos flip on his siren. _"Just sit tight, Luke. I'm comin' fast as I can."_

**Friends and neighbors, I don't know how it looks from where you're sittin', but from where I'm at, this looks _bad_. A lotta crazy things happen when a Duke is behind the wheel…but never somethin' like _this_.**


	2. Dead Men Tell no Tales

– **Chapter Two –**

"**Dead Men Tell no Tales"**

Enos' patrol car screeched to a halt on the Cottonwood Road bridge. He climbed out of the car on shaky legs, peering down into the ravine. He could see the General about fifteen yards away from the bridge, and the two cousins were waiting right beside it. Bo was sitting cross-legged on the ground, propping his elbows on his knees with his face in his hands. Luke was sitting next to him with his arm draped across his shoulders. He had heard Enos' siren before the patrol car hove into view, and he was looking up expectantly at the deputy.

"Luke! What happened?" Enos asked, scrambling down the side of the embankment.

"We ain't exactly sure," Luke replied. He was speaking calmly, but his voice was tight and his eyes were strained. "We were just comin' out from under the bridge there when—well, that man over there must've been coming down the side of the ravine. I don't know what he'd be doin' all the way out here alone, but…he stepped right out in front of us. There ain't no way we could've seen him on the other side of the bridge like that."

Enos looked back at the bridge and shook his head. Luke was right. The man—whoever he was—had been in a blind spot. Nevertheless, it didn't change what had to happen.

"Y'all, I've called an ambulance to come and get that fella," he said slowly, "but after it gets here…we're gonna have to go into town and sort this out."

Bo didn't make any sign that he had heard—but he _had_, and he had understood every unspoken implication in the deputy's words. Even under the best of circumstances, he would be in trouble for what had just happened…but in Hazzard County, a Duke didn't have the best of circumstances. All he had was Jefferson Davis Hogg.

Enos, meanwhile, had retreated near the bridge to inspect the body. He gently felt the man's pockets, searching for identification, but he came up empty. He looked back at his friends. "Hey, y'all? Did you get a look at this fella's face?"

"Yeah, we…we got a look at him, Enos. We ain't never seen him before today, though," Luke replied.

"Me neither. And he don't have no ID on him," Enos told them. He scanned the tall grass around the body, shuffling the long blades out of the way with his foot. There was no sign that the man's wallet might have fallen nearby. He swallowed hard when he saw the dark crimson stain on the ground beneath the dead man's head, and turned slowly away.

A few moments later, both Duke boys looked up when the heard the sound of the ambulance approaching. Bo noticed that it wasn't rushing and it wasn't using the siren. There wasn't any need for it. _And it's all because of me,_ he thought bitterly. He watched as the white-jacketed attendants hopped down and carried a gurney awkwardly down the grassy slope to where the body lay at the bottom of the ravine, but he turned away with a stricken look as the too-still form was lifted from the tangle of grass and covered with a sheet.

Luke put a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Bo. We'd better go."

Bo just nodded in reply. He stood up and crossed to the right side of the General, sliding into the passenger seat without a word. Luke climbed in behind the wheel and started the engine, preparing to follow Enos back to town. Although he appeared calm and collected outwardly, his gut felt as if it had been twisted in hard knots and he felt shaky. But as bad as he felt, Bo looked worse.

"Bo…" he said slowly. He waited until his cousin turned to look at him. "You know there wasn't anything you coulda done, don't you?" he asked quietly.

Bo shook his head. "I don't know," he said miserably. He turned away to stare out the window. "Luke, just drive."

Luke just drove.

**Y'all probably know this by now, but as the deputy, Enos has to report to the sheriff. Here in Hazzard, the closest thing to a sheriff he's got is Rosco P. Coltrane. So he called him up on the CB and told him what was goin' on. Rosco told him he'd meet him at the town hall, and then he lit out like a scalded cat to tell Boss Hogg. Now, Boss don't like it when people get hurt, an' he was just as shocked as y'all were when he heard the news…but that don't mean that he ain't about to pounce on this situation like a hungry coyote on a stray pup.**

"The Dukes _hit_ somebody?" Boss gasped, dark eyes growing wide in his round face.

"That's what I heard, Boss," Rosco repeated. "They called Enos out there, and I heard him ask for an ambulance. But it don't matter. The man's dead."

"Dead?" Boss pushed away the platter of hog jowls and cornbread.

"Deader'n a coffin nail."

"I never thought I'd see the day," Boss said in amazement. "A Duke actually _guilty_ of a crime! Rosco, do you know what this means?"

Rosco frowned. "It means those Duke boys gotta be feelin' pretty low right now."

"What? Oh, _besides_ that!" Boss snapped, waving the sheriff's reply away. "This means I can actually throw them in jail, and ol' Jesse can't do _nothin'_ to argue with me!"

"Ooh, that's true!" Rosco said brightly. But he quickly sobered. "But, Boss, there's someone been killed here. This ain't just runnin' shine."

"Yeah, there is that," Boss admitted with a frown. "I don't cotton to takin' advantage of someone else's misfortune…but like I always say," he said with a wink, "if there's a skunk in the gold mine, you gotta put up with the stink."

"Little Fat Buddy, I ain't exactly sure what you mean."

"I mean," Boss said with an exasperated look at his brother-in-law, "that it's too bad about this fella that got killed, but now I know for _sure_ I can get those Duke boys outta my way!" He reached for a cigar. "Who died, anyway?"

"Well, that's just it. We don't know."

"You don't know?"

"We don't know. He didn't have no wallet on him or nothin', and he's a stranger. Enos and the Duke boys ain't seen him before."

"Hmm." Boss scowled thoughtfully. "We need to find out who that dead man is and make sure he ain't tied to any of my—uh, _businesses_—in any way. Then I want you to call the State Police. I want this investigation to go as smooth and fast as possible, and I don't wanna waste time playin' a game of guess who." He rose from his desk and strode to the window to peek through the blinds. "Where's Enos and them Dukes, anyhow?"

"Well, I'll just find out!" Rosco declared. He picked up the CB on Boss' desk and cleared his throat. "Enos, this is your superior officer, Roscoooo P. Coltrane. Where you at? Come back."

"_Sheriff, we's just gettin' there now,"_ Enos replied.

"There they are!" Boss interrupted, catching sight of the Hazzard County patrol car and the General Lee as the cars pulled up out front.

Outside, Luke shut off the ignition and looked over at his cousin. Bo hadn't spoken a word the whole way into town, hadn't even looked at him. Luke climbed out of the car and walked around to the passenger side, leaning on the window frame. Bo glanced up at him briefly before looking past him at the town hall with dread in his eyes. Enos was hovering hesitantly in the background, unsure of what he should do.

Luke finally sighed and tipped his head in the direction of the tall brick building. "Come on," he urged quietly. He stepped out of the way so Bo could climb out of the car. He and Enos stepped up so Bo could walk between them, and the three of them headed inside. Boss and Rosco were waiting in the main room, staring expectantly at the door.

"All right, now," Rosco said immediately, giving them a stern look. "I wanna hear this story from the beginning, and I wanna hear it now. What happened?"

Luke knew Bo wasn't going to talk and Enos hadn't been there, so it fell to him to explain the situation. Rosco and Boss listened with stern frowns and wide eyes, glancing back and forth between the two cousins as Luke spoke. It didn't take long for him to run through the story again, but he could tell that Boss had made his decision before they had even arrived back in town.

"Well, it seems to me there's only one way to look at this," the fat commissioner said when Luke had finished. "You Dukes have pushed the line one too many times, an' now you gotta face the consequences."

"I don't think I did anything wrong," Bo broke in quietly. "I didn't see him."

"_That_ is obvious," Boss replied. "What you ain't said is that maybe you _should_ have!"

"Mr. Hogg, if I can say somethin'—"

"I ain't talkin' to you, Enos!"

"But Mr. Hogg, there _was_ a blind spot, and—"

"Enos, you hush!" Rosco scolded.

"Bo Duke, you are hereby charged with reckless driving leading to manslaughter!" Boss declared. Bo didn't say anything, but with every accusing word that Boss spoke, he flinched as if he had been struck.

Luke was torn between his sorrow for his cousin and the anger that was building inside of him, listening to Boss go on like that. "Boss, you can't charge him with that!" he protested.

"And why not?" Boss demanded, narrowing his eyes. "Are you gonna tell me you Duke boys ain't reckless when you drive? And are you gonna tell me that Bo _didn't_ just hit a man this afternoon? And are you gonna tell me that man ain't _dead?_ Not this time, Luke Duke. We got you _dead to rights._ Rosco, lock 'em up!" The barrage of questions—for once, all of them valid—had left Luke at a loss for words, and he hardly knew what to do when Rosco moved to put handcuffs on him.

For the first time since the accident, Bo raised his head. "No way, you ain't lockin' Luke up!" he said forcefully. "He ain't responsible. _I_ was driving. You let him go!"

"Not a word from you, Bo Duke!" Boss scolded. "You done enough."

"I _mean_ it, Boss!" Bo's eyes sparked in his pale face. "Luke ain't guilty! I swear, if you try to throw him in jail, I'll—"

"Don't you say nothin' more, Bo," Enos suddenly broke in. "I'll take care of this. Come on, Luke, I'm takin' you into custody." He wrapped a hand around Luke's biceps and pulled his friend forcibly away. Bo looked over in alarm, but Enos shook his head sharply, warning him not to speak. "Y'all better take him away," he called over his shoulder, leading Luke into the hallway. Luke followed numbly, too troubled and confused to resist the strong tug on his arm.

"Right!" Rosco barked, giving his prisoner a push. "Come on, Bo—downstairs. I'm takin' you down and lockin' you up."

"And _I'm_ gonna make sure he _stays_ there!" Boss added, scurrying after them.

The sound of voices faded as the hallway door closed behind Luke and Enos, but the deputy kept walking, steering Luke toward the exit. Only when they stepped outside into the warm sunshine did Enos slow down. He blew out a long breath and released his hold on Luke, looking back over his shoulder at City Hall. "Well, at least Mr. Hogg forgot about you for a little bit," he said.

It was then Luke realized what Enos had done. "I—thanks, Enos," he said quietly.

"Don't mention it." Enos steered him toward one of the green-painted benches that lined the street.

Luke dropped hard onto the bench and put his face in his hands, not caring that he could feel the curious stares of passersby fixed on him. All that mattered was that Bo couldn't see him. Now that his cousin was out of sight, he let the mask over his emotions slide away and the horror of the accident came back over him in a rush.

He felt guilty, knowing that Bo was in jail alone downstairs and needed someone there, but he just wasn't strong enough to help his cousin right then. Necessity had allowed him to take charge of the situation and look after Bo, but now that he was alone he couldn't keep it up anymore. He closed his eyes and let himself go, feeling his hands start to shake as a choking feeling dread rose up to envelop him. _God, how did this happen? _

"Luke?" Enos was still at his side. "Luke, is there anything I can do?"

Luke took a deep, unsteady breath and straightened up, trying to force his scattered thoughts back together. "Um…yeah, Enos," he said vacantly. "Why—why don't you call Uncle Jesse and tell him we need him here?"

"Right away. I'll let Daisy know, too. She'll wanna be here. Just sit there an' don't move, okay? I'll be right back."

**xxxxx**

The basement of the courthouse was never very warm, but Bo felt absolutely chilled to the bone. He could still hear the dull _thud_ of the body against the fender. He could still feel the car lurch as it struck. He could still see the man's face, pale and still like a blank page. At least the man's eyes had been closed. Bo didn't think he would have been able to handle the glassy stare of a corpse fixed on him.

His stomach twisted sharply, and he gulped to stave off the sudden nausea that gripped him, shaking his head violently to shatter the image in his brain. He looked longingly at the patch of sunshine and blue sky he could see through the barred window. He wished Luke were with him, just so he wouldn't feel so utterly alone, but he wasn't about to see his cousin run the risk of being thrown in jail again. The knot in his chest loosened just a bit as he gratefully remembered Enos' interference upstairs. Boss and Rosco had been so mixed up by the unexpected circumstances that they hadn't noticed Luke had been whisked away until it was too late to go get him.

After they had stuffed Bo in the cell, the sheriff and the commissioner had scampered back upstairs—more than likely in a hurry to figure out how many pieces Bo's probation had been smashed into. Bo hadn't heard a sound since they'd vanished, and now all he could do was wait and try to ignore the heavy mantle of guilt that clung oppressively to his shoulders.

Bo shivered again as the memory of the accident pushed its relentless way to the front of his mind. He wrapped his arms around himself and wondered if he would ever feel warm again.

**Y'all realize this all happened 'cause Bo an' Luke were tryin' to help a neighbor? I tell ya, I just _hate_** **seein' the boys like this.**


	3. Take What You Can

_Thanks to everyone who has left feedback! I'm glad you're enjoying the story…it's encouraging to hear, and I appreciate the time you all took to review._

- Flynne :)

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– **Chapter Three – **

"**Take What You Can"**

Jesse made the trip from the farm to town in record time, barely managing to pull off a passable parking job in front of the courthouse. It had taken a little longer for him to get the news from his nephews than it should have, though; he had been out in the fields, and when Enos hadn't been able to reach him on the CB or the phone, he'd had to drive out to the farm and seek the old man out himself. Luke was still sitting on the bench by the street, eyes brightening with relief when he saw that his uncle had arrived.

"Uncle Jesse, am I glad you're here!" he said, rising to his feet.

Jesse put his hand on Luke's arm, concerned by his nephew's shell-shocked expression. "Luke, what happened? Where's Bo?"

"They got Bo in jail. I don't know what's goin' on inside…Enos had to hustle me outta there or they would've arrested me too. I feel like I should be in there with Bo, but he was so dead set against them tossin' me in jail, too…I didn't want to make things worse. I've just been out here the whole time—didn't know what to do, so I just waited for you to get here."

Jesse patted his shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry about it, Luke. You did just fine."

"Where _is_ Enos, anyway?"

"I don't know. He said he was goin' to the Boar's Nest to tell Daisy, but he was actin' as fidgety as if his drawers were full of crickets. I don't know what he's got stuck in his craw but I didn't have time to ask questions. Now, come on, let's go talk to that cousin of yours." He turned and led the way into the courthouse. The front room was empty when they stepped inside and so was Boss Hogg's office. Luke was a little surprised…he hadn't noticed Boss or Rosco leave, but then again, he hadn't exactly been in the state of mind to pay attention to what was going on around him. Jesse didn't want to waste time looking for the pair of county officials, so he stepped past the open door and hurried down the basement stairs with Luke at his heels.

"Bo?" he called. "I came as quick as I—" He caught sight of the young man behind bars and pulled up short. It was his nephew in the jail cell all right, but he was nearly unrecognizable. Bo was usually cheerful in the face of any trouble, but his seemingly indomitable spirit had been badly shaken and his inborn confidence was nowhere to be seen. He sat numbly on the narrow cot, staring blankly ahead. Even from across the room, Jesse could see him trembling as if a wintry chill were in the air.

Jesse steeled himself and crossed the room to stand in front of the cell. "Bo?" he said gently. "Look at me, son." Bo finally looked up to meet his uncle's eyes. His blue eyes were wide in his abnormally pale face, fogged with guilt and shame. Jesse's heart twisted in his chest as he saw his expression. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly. It was a dumb question and he knew it, but he didn't know what else he could say.

Bo dropped his gaze as he swallowed hard and slowly shook his head. "I don't know what happened, Uncle Jesse," he said huskily. "One minute we was drivin' along and the next—I swear, I didn't see him!"

"I know, I know," Jesse nodded.

"They're charging me with manslaughter," the young man went on in disbelief. "They said I was reckless." He turned to face his uncle, the look on his face pleading with Jesse to believe him as his words tumbled out in a rush. "Uncle Jesse, I know Luke and me drive wild, but we ain't never careless! I _was _in control of the car, I _was_ payin' attention, but—he came outta nowhere, I didn't know I'd hit him until it was over, I—" His words caught in his throat and he broke off.

"Bo, Bo, I believe you, it's all right," Jesse hastened to reassure him. We'll get this straightened out—you see if we don't." He turned to his other nephew. "Luke, you stay down here with him. I'm gonna try to find J.D." He turned and started up the stairs.

"Yes, sir." Luke pulled up a battered wooden chair and sat against the wall beside the iron bars, as close to his cousin as he could get.

"You shouldn't be down here," Bo said. "If Boss or Rosco see you, they'll just toss you in, too."

Luke shook his head. "I don't think so. Just you sit tight. We'll have you outta here before the sun goes down."

**xxxxx**

Daisy hit the ground running, barely remembering to turn off her jeep. She had wanted to leave the Boar's Nest the instant Enos had come to tell her the bad news, but she was the only employee there for the slow afternoon shift—Jerry, the bartender, had left after the lunchtime rush and wasn't due back until just before happy hour. She had immediately phoned his house and he had come as quickly as he could, but it had still been an agonizing forty-five minutes before he been able to relieve her.

As soon as she stepped inside City Hall, she heard Boss Hogg and the unmistakable rumble of her uncle's voice from the office. She pushed her way in without knocking and moved to stand by Jesse's side.

"Jesse, I ain't in the mood to deal with you right now," Boss was saying with a frown. Rosco stood silently behind him, watching the argument with concern.

"Yeah, well, you're _gonna_ deal with me. I wanna talk to you about Bo. Where have you been, anyway? I've been waitin' nigh on an hour for you to get back here!"

"I've heard enough about Bo!" Boss snapped. "It just so happens that I had to run out to make a few calls to the state police and do a little investigatin' of my own, and Rosco and I had to impound the General Lee for evidence until an official investigator can come look at it."

"You did _what?_"

"A crime _has _been committed, 'less you forgot. We got Bo right where we want him, and he's gonna stay there until we figure out what to do with him—'cause no thanks to him, I got a mystery guest in the county morgue!"

"It wasn't his fault," Jesse insisted. "I heard the whole story from my boys."

"Your boys ain't exactly the most reliable source of information this time 'round."

"Well, where's Enos? Luke said he met 'em at the scene of the accident. Ask him!"

"Oh, now, that there's a flaw in the slaw," Rosco interjected. "Enos is missing."

"Missing?" Daisy gasped.

"Ooh—well, not exactly 'missing'," the sheriff corrected himself. "More like 'misplaced'. I ain't seen him since we arrested Bo a couple hours ago."

"Well, go find him!" Jesse ordered impatiently. When Rosco hesitated, the old man gave him a firm nudge toward the door. Rosco stumbled and gave an affronted growl, but he managed to make it out of the room and headed toward the exit. He barged out the door full-tilt, only to run smack into his deputy going the other way.

"Enos!" he barked, scrabbling to keep his hat from falling off his head. "You dipstick, where have you been? I've been lookin' for you for almost two hours…" He trailed off as he noticed the gray metal box in the younger man's hands. He poked at the box hesitantly. "Is that…?" Enos nodded. Rosco glanced furtively over his shoulder in the direction of Boss' office, then hurriedly pulled out his wallet and shoved a twenty dollar bill into Enos' hand. "That's all I got right now."

Enos grinned gratefully as he put the money into the box. "Gee, thanks, Sheriff!"

Rosco waved him away with an irritated expression on his face. "Just get in there—and don't tell Boss," he said warningly.

"No, sir, Sheriff. Yes, sir, Sheriff," Enos agreed. He looked down at the box in his hands, glad that Rosco hadn't been mad at him. He wasn't sure if he had what he needed, but at least he had a good start. He took a deep breath and walked determinedly toward Boss Hogg's office with Rosco following behind.

**xxxxx**

"Well, Jesse, I think it's 'bout time we started talkin' bail, ain't it?"

"All right, how much you want _this_ time?" Jesse growled, fishing out his wallet.

**Y'know, I think the Dukes are the only family in Hazzard that have bail money as part of the weekly budget.**

"Bail is set at twenty-five hundred dollars."

Jesse's head jerked up in shock. "Twenty-five—!"

"Boss, we don't have that kind of money! You know we don't!" Daisy burst out, tears starting in her eyes.

"Well, I can't help that! I can't just let a killer _walk_ out of—"

"J.D. Hogg, Bo ain't a killer and you _know_ it!" Jesse bellowed, slamming his hand on the desk. "It was an _accident!_"

Boss jerked back in alarm. "I know, I know!" he spouted, waving his hands frantically to cover the gaffe. "But there's a man dead and, like it or not, Bo is responsible—and those are _his _words, not mine! What's that man's family gonna say if they find out I just let him go? What would you say if it was one of _your_ family?"

That brought Jesse up short. He looked away, eyes growing sad and distant as he realized the rationale behind Boss' question. His gathering ire started seeping away as he let out a heavy sigh.

"It ain't just some stranger you got down there—it's _Bo!_" he said. Only Daisy could hear the beginnings of desperation creeping into his voice. "Confound it, J.D., I know he's landed hisself in trouble, and I know you don't like my boys, but you've knowed him since he was born! You've watched him grow up—no matter what you _say _about him, somewhere inside yourself you _know_ he'd never do somethin' wrong if he could help it…whether you admit it or not."

"Jesse, I don't like this any more than you do—" Boss paused and frowned as Jesse scoffed disbelievingly. "—But I gotta have that bail money! I can't just let him go for nothing. It's a major discount anyway—you got any idea what bail would be in Atlanta?"

"A 'discount'? That's my _nephew_ down there, not a used car! He's hurtin' and he's scared, and I ain't gonna let my boy sit in jail when he's in that state," Jesse said angrily, stamping his foot. "Now, you let him out!"

Daisy stood quietly to the side, watching the argument while she tried hard not to cry. Things had gone from bad to worse, and now it was starting to look hopeless. She was beginning to be afraid that they really might have to leave Bo in jail—but just then the office door creaked open and Enos walked in, carrying a gray metal box. He glanced nervously at Boss Hogg, but kept coming in, stopping in front of Jesse with a respectful look on his face.

"We took up a collection for Bo, Uncle Jesse. I think we got most of his bail money right here. If y'all can cover the rest, y'all should be able to take him home now."

**Now, how 'bout that? Every once in a while, ol' Enos will do somethin' to surprise ya. It ain't exactly what I'd call a silver lining to the big ol' black cloud hoverin' over the Dukes today, but sometimes you just gotta take what you can.**

"Oh, Enos, you're wonderful!" Daisy threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. The deputy blushed clear up to the roots of his hair, but he managed not to drop the money box. Jesse hesitated for a moment, unsure if he wanted to take so much money that he knew he couldn't easily pay back…but he knew that anybody who would give money to help them would have done it out of the goodness of their hearts because they cared about his family. Even more importantly, it meant that Bo would be let go. Jesse had as much pride as anyone who bore the Duke name, but a Duke never let pride come before family. So after a brief pause, his bearded face softened and he gave Enos a grateful handshake.

Boss snatched the box from Enos and rifled through it, counting through the pile of cash and checks. "You're three hundred and fifty dollars short," he said, snapping the lid shut.

Jesse gave him a stone-faced look. "I can give you two hundred."

"And you're gonna get the rest from _me_," Daisy spoke up firmly. "Boss, you know I can make it up on tips, easy. I ain't got it now, but right as soon as I go back to work, you get a hundred percent of my tips 'til the balance is paid off."

Boss stood silent for a moment, glowering at Daisy and Jesse as he thought. "Fine," he grunted. "But you're gonna pay interest on that one hundred and fifty bucks, too, Daisy Duke."

"You got it!" Daisy agreed. She knew it meant that she would practically be paying Boss to let her work until he had what he wanted, but she didn't care. The money didn't matter as long as Bo was out of jail.

"All right, go get your boy," Boss said. "Rosco, go let him out," he told the sheriff, who was listening from the doorway. He turned around and puffed on his cigar as Jesse hurried from the room, dragging the sheriff with him. Daisy was still holding Enos' arm, and she pulled the deputy along with a warm smile.

Boss just shook his head. "It ain't gonna matter in the long run, though," he said matter-of-factly to himself. "Once the investigation gets cookin', Bo Duke is gonna be back behind bars so fast, he'll think he was ridin' a boomerang."

**xxxxx**

Luke heard the sound of several pairs of feet on the stairs, coupled with the jingle of keys and Rosco's indignant protests that he was being scuffed in the rush to get downstairs. He did his best to give Bo an encouraging smile. "What'd I tell you, Cuz? Uncle Jesse done sprung you."

A moment later, Rosco and Jesse rounded the bend in the stairs to enter the cell block. Bo watched with a mixture of relief and doubt in his eyes from his place on the cot as the sheriff fumbled noisily with his keys. The cell door swung open with a metallic grating sound.

Jesse stepped past Rosco and into the cell. He reached out to put his hand on the back of Bo's neck. "It's all right now, son. We're gettin' out of here."

Without a word, Bo stood and let his uncle shepherd him upstairs, Luke just behind. Daisy saw him coming. As soon as he stepped onto the main floor, she left Enos' side and walked over to him, putting her arms around his waist. He hugged her so tightly that it almost hurt, but she didn't say anything. She just stood there and let him hold on to her.

"Come on, honey," she said gently. "Let's go home." She took him by the hand and led him away.


	4. From Bad to Good to Worse

– **Chapter Four – **

**"From Bad to Good to Worse"**

**It don't take a genius to understand that the Dukes done had themselves a real bad day—'specially Bo and Luke. Even Fender noticed it when his family got home, and he was real confused when he didn't see the General Lee. But, like most dogs, he picked up on the fact that his buddies was pretty upset about something. He spent the rest of the day watchin' 'em and stickin' close, hopin' he could help fix the problem, whatever it was. He tried real hard, but it didn't do much good. Right now I don't see no way to fix what the boys have gotten themselves into.**

Something warm and wet brushed against Luke's face, startling him awake. He grunted and rubbed at the damp trail on his cheek, blinking sleepily in the dark room as he wondered what had awakened him. He found himself staring point blank into a pair of liquid brown eyes. Fender had propped his front legs on Luke's mattress and was staring expectantly into the young man's face. Seeing that Luke was awake, the dog leaned in again and swiped his tongue against Luke's nose. Luke sputtered and pushed Fender's muzzle away.

"Aw, knock it off!" he mumbled. "I let you out before we went to bed." He pulled the covers over his head and tried to go to back sleep, but the sound of his voice only encouraged the dog further, and he was forced to sit up when Fender hopped on top of him and started pawing at his head.

"Okay, fine, we'll go," Luke gave in, whispering his exasperation into the dog's hopeful face. "But I don't know why you can't bug Bo." He darted a glance over at his cousin's bed—and saw it was empty. So that's how it was. Bo had gotten up and left without waking Luke, but when the dog heard him leave, he decided he just _had_ to follow.

Luke sighed. "You're too dang nosy, you know that?" Fender just wagged his tail and hopped down from the bed, waiting for Luke to open the bedroom door. Luke followed the dog down the hall into the living room. He let Fender into the front yard, but then his face furrowed in a mild frown as he saw his cousin sitting alone on the porch. Bo took no notice of the dog as it trotted past him, but continued sitting motionless on the wooden steps, his head in his hands.

"Bo? What're you doin' out here?" Luke closed the door softly behind him and sat down beside his cousin.

"Couldn't sleep," Bo replied quietly. His wrinkled shirt hung loosely across his shoulders, thrown on hastily and left unbuttoned.

The two cousins sat in silence for several minutes. Fender finished sniffing around the yard and padded over to where the boys sat. He stood next to Bo and pawed gently at him, asking for a pat. When Bo didn't respond, the dog gave a resigned sigh and lay down, resting his head on the young man's knee.

"Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you—when you were in the marines…" He paused, taking a deep breath and blinking rapidly against the burning behind his eyes. Luke had a feeling he knew what Bo was going to ask him, but he didn't say anything. He just waited patiently. Bo regained control of himself and started speaking again, voice so quiet Luke could hardly hear it. "When you were in the marines, did you ever feel like I do now?"

Luke gave a sad little sigh. "That's a complicated question, Bo," he said slowly. He could feel Bo's eyes on him, but he continued looking at the dirt between his bare feet. "It was different…I went through boot camp and training, sorta getting my mind into a certain pattern. You learn to divide up your brain into different parts, but…" He swallowed hard. He didn't particularly want to talk about combat. It was a different situation, a different mindset, something he didn't really want to go back to. He'd had to draw on those memories once already that day, and he'd had enough of it.

"Do you remember that time when I got tossed into that big mirror Boss Hogg bought?" he asked as another memory came to him. "Remember how he arrested me for it and wanted to force me to fight to get myself out of jail?"

"Yeah."

"I told him I'd given up boxing. You remember why?"

"You said…there was that guy you were fightin'…"

"Yeah." Luke turned to hold his cousin's gaze. "When I was standing in the ring lookin' down at him, and everybody started running to pick him up…I thought I'd killed him. He was alive when they took him to the infirmary, but…man, it was touch-and-go." His blue eyes were troubled and an old pain was in his voice. "It wasn't my fault, but I remember how terrible I felt until I knew for sure he was gonna pull through. All the same, he was hurt bad enough that they had to send him back home." A thin, humorless smile touched his lips. "'Course, he probably got the better end of the deal…we were shipped overseas a short time later.

"It bothered me for a long time, though," he continued. "I couldn't get rid of the memory of seein' him lying there, bleeding onto the mat…Felt like it was burned on my brain. It's not easy to shake. You saw how I acted when Boss tried to shove that boxing match down my throat."

Bo's hands were trembling. "That's what I feel," he whispered. "I keep feelin' the wheel jerk in my hands…I keep seein' him go by, seein' his face while he was lying there…" He turned haunted blue eyes on his cousin. "Does it ever stop?" he asked pleadingly.

Luke put his hand on Bo's shoulder. "It does, Bo. Honest. It might take some time, but it will."

Bo didn't say anything in return, but somewhere deep inside, he started to feel just a little bit better. The warmth of the dog pressing against him and his cousin's hand on his shoulder was helping to chase away the chill that had been clinging to his insides all day…and it helped to know that Luke understood what he was going through. If Luke told him that things got better, well, he must be right. It didn't do much for him right then, but it was enough to allow him to hope.

The worried lines on his face softened just a bit. "Cousin, the way you said that…I think I might believe you."

Luke gave him a relieved smile and clapped him on the back. "'Course you do. I ain't never lied to you before, have I? Now, come on. You say you can't sleep, but you ain't gonna be able to do it out here no matter how much you try. Let's get on back to bed."

**xxxxx**

The sun was well on its way across the sky the next day before Bo woke up. He was alone in the bedroom. He wasn't sure when Luke had gotten up, but his older cousin had managed to get dressed and make his bed without waking him.

Bo turned onto his back and looked at the ceiling. The sun was shining brightly outside and a warm breeze was blowing in his window, but the memory of the day before hovered over him like a gray cloud. His eyes slid closed as he tried to fight off the feelings of guilt and helplessness that had plagued him the day before. _Is this ever going to leave me alone?_

"_It does, Bo. Honest. It might take some time, but it will."_

He took a deep breath and opened his eyes, a determined look on his face as Luke's words from the night before came back to him. What had happened had happened, and wallowing in his misery wasn't going to do anything but make him more miserable. There wasn't anything he could do about it now except go forward. Maybe it would be one little, dragging step at a time, but it would be forward.

He rolled out of bed and grabbed a handful of clothes as he headed down the narrow hallway to take a shower, walking just a little taller as he felt his heart start beating more easily within his chest.

**xxxxx**

Luke looked up from the morning paper and smiled hopefully as he heard Bo's familiar tread in the hallway. His cousin walked into the kitchen, pulling a brown t-shirt on over his head, blond hair still damp and tousled from the vigorous towel-drying he had given it. He looked tired, but there was a lightness in his step that hadn't been there the day before.

"Mornin'," Luke ventured.

"G'morning." Fender had come over to greet Bo immediately, and he bent down to scratch behind the dog's ears before opening the door to let him out into the yard. "Where's Jesse and Daisy?"

"Out in the back forty and at work." Luke didn't say that the only reason he wasn't with their uncle in the fields was because Jesse had asked him to stay behind to keep an eye on Bo.

**Luke sure tries hard to be good to Bo, don't he? 'Course, what Luke don't know is that the _other_ reason his uncle wanted him to stay behind is 'cause Jesse was worried about _him_, too. But we ain't gonna tell him that.**

"We got anything to eat?"

"I think there's biscuits left over. I can make you some eggs if you want."

Bo looked at the clock. "Nah, it's almost eleven. I'll just make a sandwich." He pulled out a plate and started rummaging in the refrigerator, looking for the ham.

"How you doin' this morning?" Luke asked after a moment.

Bo paused with his knife in the mustard jar, looking down at the counter. "I don't feel all that good, but…I'm tryin'. I know there wasn't anything I coulda done to change things yesterday, but it might take me a little while to actually believe it. Anyway…" he continued, getting back to work on his sandwich, "…I had someone to listen to me and give me advice last night. Thanks." The smile he sent Luke's way was hesitant and it didn't reach his eyes…but it was better than nothing.

"Glad I could help." Luke returned the smile. He was relieved to see that a good night's sleep, a little encouragement, and Bo's natural optimism were doing their work to get his cousin back to normal. He was decidedly more subdued than Luke ever remembered seeing him, but the guilty slump to his shoulders was gone, hopefully for good.

"What about you?" Bo asked, dropping into a chair across the table.

"What _about_ me?"

Bo looked at him over the top of his sandwich. "You were in the car yesterday too, ya know. You seemed to have your head together, but I know you're good at fakin' it."

"Oh, well…I'm all right," Luke answered. Bo gave him a searching look. "Really, I'm fine," he repeated.

"If you say so."

Luke reached for the paper again and started skimming through the sports section. He _was_ all right…for the most part. A man can control his emotions if he tries hard enough while he's awake, but there isn't anything he can do once he has fallen asleep. Luke had managed to drop off to sleep just fine, but the disturbing dreams that had rolled relentlessly through his mind hadn't exactly made for a restful night. But he wasn't going to tell Bo that.

Bo glanced at the newspaper strewn across the kitchen table and felt his heart sink as he saw the headline splashed across the front page: _"Unidentified man killed in accident"_. Thankfully, his name wasn't in the title, but of course it was in the article. He knew that he and his cousin had a reputation for wild driving, but up until now, most of Hazzard had looked on them like a couple of favorite—if unpredictable—sons. He wondered dismally if anyone would ever trust him behind the wheel again.

"We should get on out and help Uncle Jesse," he said abruptly, folding the newspaper to push it away from his eyes and out of his mind. "He shouldn't oughta have to work out there by himself."

"Well…he said if we had time, we should probably try to get over to the Tompkins place again. We never did get over there yesterday, and they need that roof fixed before it rains again."

Bo winced. "I forgot about that."

"Yeah, I know…but Jesse said we could use the truck, so if we wanted to—" Luke broke off and looked curiously over his shoulder he heard Fender start barking outside. A moment later, the sound of car engines and tires on gravel drifted in the open window. He rose to out the window as a Hazzard County patrol car rolled up, followed by a dark blue car. "What's goin' on now?" he muttered.

Bo stood to stand next to him, watching as Fender ran up to the Patrol car to greet Rosco as he emerged from his vehicle. He flattened his ears and his feathered tail wagged happily as the sheriff bend to pat his head.

**Ever notice that dogs just plain like Rosco? Maybe it's 'cause they feel so much smarter when he's around.**

Rosco turned away from the dog and hustled around to the blue car to meet the driver as he got out. Fender hopped up to rest his front paws in the open window of the patrol car, tail wagging even faster as Flash sat up on the seat and leaned forward to touch noses.

Meanwhile, the driver of the other car had emerged and was engaged in conversation with Rosco. The man appeared to be in his mid-thirties, and his khaki pants and linen shirt contrasted sharply with Bo and Luke's farm clothes, but the man's formal appearance was softened in that his collar was unbuttoned, his sleeves were rolled up, and he wasn't wearing a tie.

Bo frowned in puzzlement as Rosco abruptly turned, shooed Fender away from his car, and drove off, leaving the stranger to walk toward the house. Fender noticed that someone new was still on his territory, and he trotted close behind the stranger, sniffing inquiringly at the man's pant leg. Bo moved to stand in front of the screen door, eyeing the man with a mixture of curiosity and caution as he approached.

"Somethin' I can do for you?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," the stranger replied. His voice was pleasant, but businesslike. "My name is Nate Miles. I'm a police detective working as an investigator for Federal Prosecutor Jacob Bronson. Sheriff Coltrane was kind enough to show me the way here—I'm here to talk to Beauregard Duke about what happened yesterday." He pulled out his wallet and held it out to display the gold badge on the inside flap.

**Uh oh. Now, what d'you suppose _he_ wants?**

The friendly expression faded from Bo's face and his brows drew together in a worried frown. "That's me," he said hesitantly. He stepped back and opened the door, allowing Miles to enter the kitchen. Fender followed, continuing his sniff until crumbs on the floor distracted him.

Luke folded his arms across his chest. "You're workin' for a _federal_ prosecutor?" he asked, sudden watchfulness lacing his voice.

"That's right."

"That ain't called for…what happened yesterday was an accident," Luke said firmly.

"Yes, I know Mr. Duke didn't mean to hit the man," Miles replied, "but I don't think it was an accident."

Luke frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Miles gestured to the kitchen table. "Could we sit down?"

"Sure."

The three men sat down at the table. Bo and Luke sat next to each other across from the investigator. Luke wasn't touching his younger cousin, but the protectiveness he felt for Bo was plainly visible, and there was a warning in his serious blue eyes that told Miles he would be in big trouble if he tried to push Bo around.

The investigator turned to Luke. "Before we start, I'd like to have your name, please, Mr…?"

"He's a Duke, too," Bo said. "My cousin, Luke. Anything you got to say to me, he can hear. Now, would you mind speakin' plain so we can understand you?"

Miles rested his arms on the table and fixed Bo with a serious gaze. "Mr. Duke, we had the state coroner inspect the body yesterday afternoon. It takes thirty days for an official, complete report to be finalized, but we can get the preliminary results right away. I got the initial report this morning. That man was not killed by your car."

Bo's mouth dropped open. "What?"

"There were broken bones and severe internal injuries where the man was struck by the car," Miles continued, "and it's highly likely he would have died from them eventually, but the worst injury was a blow to the head. Without getting too graphic—well, the damage was extensive enough to kill someone even if there were no other injuries. We think what killed him was the blow to the head." The pair of cousins looked at each other, stunned.

"You '_think'_?" Luke leaned forward. "Mister, this is my cousin's life and future at stake. You better be double damn sure."

Miles looked grim. "I'm double damn sure. The head injury was on the back of the victim's head, here on the left side." He placed the palm of his hand on his own head, above and behind his left ear. "But the victim was struck by your car on the _right_ side, and from the autopsy, the coroner has determined that those injuries occurred after the victim was already dead. He hadn't been dead long, which is probably why the paramedics who picked up the body didn't suspect anything…but he was dead, just the same."

Bo stared, wide-eyed, at the detective. "How?" he asked breathlessly.

"That's what we're trying to figure out. Can you tell me anything about the accident?"

"It just happened so fast," Bo said quietly. He sat still for a minute, thinking. "Well, we were out by Cottonwood Road. I was goin' near fifty…There's a ravine that runs across Cottonwood that we like to drive in—the road's got a bridge over the ravine. Right when we were comin' out from under the bridge, the man came out of nowhere and—and I hit him."

"But if he was already dead, he couldn't step out in front of the General like that," Luke said to himself.

Miles paused for a moment before he asked, "Did you see anyone else around when you stopped to go back?"

"No," Luke said with a puzzled frown. "There weren't nobody around—" He broke off, sudden understanding lighting in his eyes as he understood what Miles was getting at. "You think the killer was there," he said. "You think he killed that man and then threw him up in front of the car to cover it up."

"It looks that way. My team and I went over your car this morning—there's no blood on it anywhere. With an injury that bad, if the man's head _had_ struck your car, we would have seen evidence of it."

"You hear that, Bo?" Luke asked. "It wasn't the car that killed him! Heck, you didn't even hit him, if you get right down to it. There weren't no way to avoid it if someone was waitin' for an opportunity like that."

"I—y-yeah," Bo stammered. He looked across the table at the detective with growing hope in his eyes. "Mister, are you—you're sure about this now? I'm innocent?"

Miles smiled and nodded reassuringly. "You're innocent, Mr. Duke. You're as much a victim as the man who was killed."

Bo collapsed against the back of his chair and let out his breath in a rush, scrunching his fingers through his blond curls as he shook his head. A bewildered smile started to make its way across his face. "Miles, that there's the best news I've got all year. If you was a lady, I'd kiss you!" Miles laughed, but it was a halfhearted sound and both boys could see there was still something that had gone unsaid.

Bo sobered immediately and asked with some trepidation, "What ain't you tellin' us?"

"Well, there's just one problem," Miles said slowly. "We don't know if the killer was waiting for any car to come along…or waiting for _your_ car."

"What?"

Miles sighed. "I haven't told you what case I'm investigating yet."

"You ain't here for me?" Bo asked in confusion.

"I needed to talk to you about the accident, but when I looked over my files yesterday I realized that I would have needed to come talk to you—both of you—within the next week or so, whether this had happened or not. I'm gathering evidence for a Grand Jury regarding crimes committed in Osage County. The victim's name was Terrence Cole—he was going to testify for the indictment of Commissioner Cassius B. Claibourne."

Bo immediately went rigid, blue eyes widening when he heard the familiar name. "You—you said Cassius Claibourne?" he forced out. He glanced over at Luke, seeing alarm suddenly alight in his cousin's eyes.

"Then you _do_ know Claibourne?"

Luke swallowed hard against his dry throat. "You might say that."

**Y'know, as glad as I am to hear that Bo ain't at fault for what happened, this ain't exactly good news, folks. Cassius Claibourne is one name I'd be happy if I never heard again. I don't know if y'all remember him…but from the look on Bo and Luke's faces, _they_ sure do.**

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_Note: The two episodes alluded to in this chapter were: "And in This Corner, Luke Duke", and "Cool Hands, Luke and Bo". _


	5. Investigators and Imposters

– **Chapter Five –**

"**Investigators and Impostors"**

**Folks, there's but one man who wears a badge that can make Bo and Luke Duke nervous, and that man is Colonel Cassius B. Claibourne. Claibourne is the Commissioner of Osage County, and is one of the most dangerous and most feared men in Georgia. He's the fella that put ol' Bo and Luke in a chain gang and tried to sentence them to two years hard labor in his rough Osage Road Prison, and the boys had one heck of a hard time gettin' outta there. I sure hope this ain't more than a coincidence.**

"Detective Miles," Luke said slowly, "I think you'd better start explaining. Now."

"The state has been keeping an eye on Commissioner Claibourne for several years," Miles said. "He's known to have his hand in some pretty shady deals. Some of it is the usual corruption we see from time to time: misuse of county funds, the odd moonshine racket, tie-ins with illegal gambling rings…all allegations of course, nothing proven," he added cynically, "but he's had some more serious offenses in the past that we haven't been able to prove, particularly where the Osage Road Prison is concerned.

"There have been complaints for years from families saying their relatives have been unjustly imprisoned and treated poorly—even to the point of neglect and abuse—while serving out their sentences, but we could never manage to get enough hard evidence together to start an inquiry…up until about three months ago, that is. We aren't sure what happened, but there was a major breakout of the Osage Road Prison. You probably read about it in the papers."

"Um…yeah…yeah, we did," Bo said guardedly, giving Luke a sidelong glance. They knew exactly what Miles was talking about, and the more they heard, the more uneasy they felt. But the investigator didn't catch the look they gave each other, so he just kept talking.

"Claibourne's whole system got completely shot to hell as a result of the breakout and the state came down on him like a ton of bricks. He's still been running Osage County and he's still got his prison, but he may not be for too much longer. We've been gathering evidence and contacting witnesses to see if we can put him on trial. We've got a stack of charges against him, running the gamut from embezzlement to wrongful death—possibly murder, depending on what we find out about that prison. He had a pack of hounds there that he'd set after anyone who escaped. Not too many tried it, but those that got away, well…none of them got far."

_Except for us,_ Luke thought. And even though he was pretty sure he knew the answer, he asked, "So what do you need to talk to us for?"

"Well, both of you are on the list of people associated with the Osage Road Prison around that time. I'll admit I don't know _how_ you're connected…our sources aren't very clear on that point, and Claibourne has given us a nasty time about getting our hands on his official records. All I have is a list of names and a prayer that someone can tell me what happened three months ago."

"I can tell you what happened to Osage Prison," Bo said. "_We_ happened."

"Beg pardon?"

"Me and Luke. Claibourne set a trap for us and had us arrested on false charges. He sentenced us to two years hard labor on the Osage road gang. We wound up stayin' in that prison for almost two weeks before we busted outta there." A faint smile touched his face as he remembered. "We took everyone with us. Most of those guys had to go back to prison, but some were let go 'cause they got tossed in there for the same reason we did."

"That explains it," Miles said with growing understanding. "You were the catalyst that set off this whole investigation. That's why Cole was pushed in front of _your_ car. They had to kill him beforehand just in case the accident didn't finish him off, but—" He broke off and looked at Bo and Luke in sudden concern.

"This isn't over," he said seriously. "If Claibourne really is behind this—and I'll wager he is—you boys have got bull's-eyes on your backs. Cole isn't the first witness we've lost over the past few months. He's the only one that's been killed, but the others…they all refused flat out or said they would but found some excuse to back out later, and we think it's because Claibourne threatened them, even though we can't prove it. He may be in trouble, but he's still a powerful man and a lot of people are afraid of him. Cole was the first who didn't back down."

"And you think we're next," Bo finished. He rubbed a hand over his face and tipped his chair back on two legs. "But why make it look like _we_ killed Cole? I hate to say it, but Claibourne's real good at covering his tracks. He don't need to make up something like this."

"No, he don't have to," Luke said grimly. "But he wanted to. Think about it, Bo…a man like Claibourne is just plain nasty. If he hates someone bad enough, he won't just kill 'em. He'll try to knock 'em as low as he can before he does it."

Miles nodded. "I think you're right, Mr. Duke."

Bo made a face. "Enough with the 'mister'. He's Luke, and I'm Bo."

The investigator smiled. "All right, Bo. Now, listen…until further notice, I want you two to keep a sharp eye out. You could be in serious danger—although Claibourne unwittingly helped you by what he did."

"How?"

Miles shrugged regretfully. "Cole's death. If he hadn't tried to pin it on you, I wouldn't have had a reason to come to Hazzard for another week. You'd have no way of knowing he was coming after you…by then, it might have been too late."

"I'll be ding-danged," Bo said. He dropped his chair back onto four legs and there was a short pause. "Luke, I just thought of something," he said suddenly. "Who else do we know in Hazzard that's got a beef with Claibourne?"

Luke sat up straight as he realized what Bo was getting at. "Boss Hogg."

"Bet your boots. Rosco, too," Bo added. He turned to Miles with a worried frown. "Them two was in Osage prison the same time as Luke and me. Claibourne used us as bait to lure Boss and Rosco into Osage County, and once he arrested 'em, he tried to force Boss to sign over all his business in Hazzard."

"I didn't know that," Miles replied. "I should get back to town and talk to Commissioner Hogg to let him know what's going on. Sheriff Coltrane, as well." He pushed his chair back and stood up. "Listen, we've been watching Claibourne pretty carefully, keeping him under surveillance, and we have no idea how he managed to get his hands on Cole. You should probably have the sheriff or his deputy watch your house until this blows over."

Bo snorted. "They watch it all the time and it don't do any good. A herd of elephants could get past 'em and they wouldn't notice. Me and Luke are used to watchin' our backs. We'll be all right."

"All right, but don't hesitate to call me if you need help. I mean it, now. No taking chances." The detective pulled two business cards out of his wallet and handed one to each cousin.

"Hey, what about what happened yesterday? Are you gonna get those charges against Bo dropped?" Luke asked.

Miles nodded. "We will, but not just yet. If we clear him now, Claibourne will know we're onto him. But trust me, I'll do my best to keep this quiet and as soon as possible, we'll publicly drop the charges and clear his record."

"Boy, I'm glad to hear that," Bo said in relief. "Hey, is there any chance we can get the General back?"

"The what?"

"Our car," Bo explained. "It's still impounded. Y'all don't need it any more, do ya?"

"No, we're through with it. Why don't you come with me into town? I'm going that way to talk to Commissioner Hogg…we'll kill two birds with one stone."

"Sounds good to me," Luke agreed. "Let's go, Bo."

**So the Dukes tagged along with Detective Miles to warn Boss and Rosco and to get the General outta impound. Boss weren't too keen on givin' the car back, but after he heard about Claibourne, well, he decided he had bigger fish to fry and he didn't argue too long. **

**Miles told the boys he'd be in touch, and then he went back to his office in Colonial City while Bo an' Luke took the General over to the Tompkins farm so they could finally get to fixin' the roof. Luke was kinda hopin' Bo might drive, seein' as he was lookin' a lot better than he was a few hours ago…but Bo didn't want to. So Luke drove instead…and if he was worried 'bout that, he didn't say so. **

Bo and Luke were able to make good progress on the Tompkins' roof. Phil grumbled a bit, feeling useless with his broken leg, but he was glad to see them and spent most of the afternoon sitting outside in a lawn chair, chatting with them as they worked on top of the house. Kelly handed them an envelope with a few bills in it as they left, as well as a plate of brownies, which the boys were much more excited about. Jesse and Daisy were both home when they arrived, and as the family sat down to dinner, Bo and Luke told them what had happened that day.

Jesse shook his head, stunned. "I can't believe it," he said. "I knew Cassius was a twisted ol' polecat, but I never thought he'd be capable of somethin' like _this_."

"Uncle Jesse, what's important is that _he_ did it and Bo's innocent," Daisy said, reaching for her cousin's hand to give it a squeeze. She was just as disturbed as her uncle to hear the news, but the change she saw in both her cousins since the day before was enough to make her heart feel light. Yesterday, Bo had been shaken, frightened, and guilt-stricken, and even though he'd tried to hide it, Luke hadn't been much better off.

Bo still seemed a little subdued today, but he had been talking and laughing with Luke as they arrived home. The awful haunted look was gone from his eyes—and Luke was smiling more easily now, too. It was still an alarming set of circumstances, but now that her cousins were going to be all right, Daisy couldn't make herself feel afraid.

"You're right, Daisy," Jesse said. "I just can't stand the thought that he'd be after those two, especially after all the trouble he caused last time!"

"I wonder if he's ever even realized that none of that woulda happened if he had just left us alone," Bo said.

"I doubt it," Luke said, shaking his head. "A man like that don't ever think anything's his fault." He glanced over at Fender, who was watching hopefully for someone to spill something on the floor so he could get at it. "I'm just glad we've got the fuzzball to sleep in our room. He's a better guard than Enos or Rosco ever could be."

**xxxxx**

The next day, Bo and Luke were up and dressed early. They surprised Daisy by beating her into the kitchen, and she told them as much.

"Well, we got a lot to do today," Bo said, munching on the last of his toast. "Uncle Jesse needs our help this afternoon, and this morning we gotta finish up at the Tompkins' place."

"Y'all are goin' back there again?" Daisy asked. "I thought you finished yesterday."

Luke shook his head. "Not quite. We still got a little left to do. Their roof was in worse shape than they thought. We had to replace most of one side of the house, not just the damaged part."

"Well, since you're goin' out…" Daisy reached over to her purse and pulled out a folded slip of paper. "You fellas mind pickin' up a few things in town for me? I'm off today and I'd just as soon not run all over the place if I don't have to."

"I swear, you just _look_ for ways to get us to go shopping," Bo complained good-naturedly. He plucked the list from her hand and skimmed over it. "Laundry soap, coffee, potatoes…" He wrinkled his nose. "_More_ potatoes?"

"Yeah, I'm running out. What's wrong with 'em?" Daisy asked.

"Ain't we been eating 'em a lot lately?"

She shrugged. "They've been on sale. Besides, I thought you liked potatoes."

He paused and shrugged reluctantly. "Well…yeah, but…"

"Then quit complaining, you feather-head!" Daisy said with a laugh, mussing his hair. "Unless _you_ want to start doin' the cooking around here."

"Daisy, you got no idea what you're suggesting," Luke warned.

Bo scowled at him. "You're real funny, Luke."

"Yep, I know. Now will you hurry up? The sun ain't gonna stand still, ya know."

"I'm comin', I'm comin'!" Bo hopped up from the table and plunked his dirty dishes in the sink, chasing after his cousin. He dodged around Fender and slipped out the door, shutting it in his face to keep the dog from running after him. "Sorry, Fender! Bye, Daisy!" he called back. He slid into the passenger side of the General as Luke started the engine, waving goodbye as they peeled out and headed for the Tompkins' farm.

Daisy waved back. She looked down as she heard Fender heave a heartfelt sigh, gazing out the screen door at the disappearing car. "Those cats sure are a whole bundle of furry problems, aren't they?" she sympathized. He just snorted and sat down, staring stubbornly out the door. She smiled fondly and bent to tousle his ears. "Aww, cheer up, Fender! You know they'll be back before you know it!"

Fender gave her a doubtful look before lying down in the doorway, giving another resigned sigh as he settled in to wait. Daisy laughed to herself and shook her head. Her Lost Sheep cousins had sure found the right lost dog to fit in with their family. She ate quickly and cleaned up the kitchen before she started on her chores.

A few hours later found Daisy in the middle of gathering up the week's laundry from around the house. She pushed open the bathroom door and rolled her eyes when she saw the discarded wet towel lying in the middle of the floor. It had to be Bo's, she knew…Jesse always put everything back where he got it, and leaving towels lying around was just not something an ex-Marine did. She scooped it up and added it to her laundry basket, only to be interrupted by the jangle of the phone. She hurried to the front of the house to answer it.

"Duke residence, Daisy speaking." She shifted her weight and propped the laundry basket against her left hip.

"_Hello, Miss Duke. This is Detective Miles from the state police…I met with Bo and Luke the other day."_

"Oh, sure! They mentioned you…I'm real grateful that you came to talk to 'em, Mr. Miles. What can I do for you?"

"_Well, I'd like to talk to the boys again if I could. Are they around?"_

"Sorry, they ain't here right now. They've been gone all morning."

"_Do you know where they are?"_

"Last I heard, they were goin' out to the Tompkins farm to help put a roof on their house. I guess they're still there."

"_Well, that's all right. They can finish what they're doing, but when they get home, could you ask them to meet me at the Boar's Nest? It's important."_

"I can do you one better. Hold on just a sec." Daisy put down the phone and her laundry, heading for the CB in the kitchen. "This here's Bo Peep callin' the Lost Sheep—you got your ears on, fellas?"

Up on the Tompkins' roof, Bo and Luke heard the CB call and looked down at the General. "I'll get it," Bo offered. He put down his hammer and slid down the ladder, jogging over to the car to scoop up the mike.

"Hey, Daisy! What's up?"

"_I got Detective Miles here on the phone. He wants y'all to meet him at the Boar's Nest when you get the chance—says he's gotta talk to you."_

Bo looked up to where Luke was sitting on the shingles. "Did you hear that, Luke?"

"Yeah." Luke glanced critically at the roof. "We should be done here in another twenty minutes or so. Have her tell him we can be at the Boar's Nest in under an hour."

"That's _if_ we don't run into Rosco on the way," Bo said, rolling his eyes.

Daisy listened for Bo's response, and once she heard back from him, she picked up the phone again to relay the message. "Mr. Miles? Bo and Luke are almost done out at the farm. They said they can meet you in less than an hour."

"_Thanks a lot, Miss Duke, I appreciate it. You take care, now."_

"You too. Bye!"

Bo and Luke hurried to finish the roofing job, wanting to meet with Miles as soon as they could. Once again, they accepted a small envelope and a large paper bag filled with cookies from Kelly Tompkins. They waved goodbye to Phil and headed for the General.

"Well, looks like we'll get there right on time," Luke said. He was walking just a little behind Bo, rummaging in the bag for a cookie.

Bo grinned. "No kidding! Just in time to grab lunch and a beer before we meet up with Uncle Jesse."

"And pick up that stuff Daisy wanted," Luke reminded him.

Bo rolled his eyes. "Right. I forgot about that."

"You still got the list with you?"

"Yeah, yeah, it's right here." He patted his pocket with his hand, but the smile on his face turned thoughtful as he felt his keys inside next to the folded paper. He slowed down a little as he approached the General and stood still for a few seconds, looking at the car. For a moment, Luke thought he was going to step around to the passenger side again—but he gave himself a little shake and turned around, reaching into the bag Luke held to pull out a handful of cookies.

"Y'know, Luke, I think _I'll_ be drivin' us to the Boar's Nest," he said with a smile.

Luke laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. "Atta boy! Come on, let's burn rubber!"

**xxxxx**

The teapot was just starting to boil when the car pulled into the drive. The laundry was done, the house was picked up, and Daisy was taking a break, thoroughly engrossed in the book she was reading. She didn't hear the car pull up or the _thud _as the door slammed closed, so when the brisk knock on the screen door came, she looked up with a little gasp and a start.

"Sorry, miss, I didn't mean to startle you."

"Oh, that's all right. Come on in, it's open!"

The door swung open and a dark-haired man in his early thirties stepped inside. Daisy tipped her head inquisitively at the handsome newcomer and asked, "You lookin' for someone?"

"Yes, Bo and Luke Duke. My name is Nate Miles. I'm the investigator that met with them yesterday. Are they here?"

"Oh, so _you're _the one that called!" Daisy smiled and put down her book, crossing the room to shake the man's hand. "Well, it's nice to see a face to go with the voice. The boys still ain't home, though. Didn't they find you all right this afternoon?"

Miles looked vaguely puzzled. "Well, I need to talk to them. Were they trying to reach me earlier?"

Daisy looked at the stranger in surprise. "You ain't seen 'em today?"

"No, I've been over at my office in Colonial City."

A tiny alarm began ringing at the back of Daisy's mind. She eyed the visitor cautiously and took a small step backwards. "You got any identification I could look at?"

Miles was obviously caught off guard by the unexpected question, but he complied. "Sure…here." He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and handed it to her. Daisy's heart started to beat a little faster. The driver's license and badge were the real things all right, and the business cards matched the ones she had seen her cousins with the day before.

"You—you didn't call and tell me to have the boys meet you at the Boar's Nest earlier today?" she asked, trying to keep the sudden edge of fear out of her voice.

Miles shook his head, beginning to look worried. "No, I didn't. What's this all about?"

The tiny alarm became a clanging gong. "Well…someone called earlier and had me tell Bo and Luke to meet him at the Boar's Nest. He said he was you!"

The detective's mouth drew into a thin line. "How long ago was that?"

"Couldn't have been no later than eleven o'clock." Daisy pushed past Miles and grabbed for the CB. "This is Bo Peep callin' her sheep. Bo and Luke, you read me?...Bo and Luke, please come back!"

Silence.

Miles' face was hard and grim. "I don't like this."

Daisy gave the detective a fearful look. "You don't think—"

"Unfortunately, I do. That's what I needed to talk to the boys about…I wanted to warn them. We've lost track of Claibourne."

**Boy, I sure ain't happy to hear that. Cassius Claibourne is like a mad hornet: you really don't want him around, but if he _is_ around, you at least wanna know where he is so you don't get stung. This is _bad_ news, y'all. **


	6. Two Spiders, One Web

_Once again, thank you all so much for the feedback and encouragement! I really appreciate it. _:)

_Quick note to avoid any possible confusion for anyone who has seen the episode "Cool Hands, Luke and Bo", since I haven't directly come out and said this: I've stuck this story in after the Dukes instigated the prison break but before the episode wrapped up, so Osage Prison is still up and running. (If you haven't seen the ep, it shouldn't matter…I tried to include enough background that there shouldn't be any gaps, but feel free to ask me if I didn't.) _:) _There wasn't any mention of how much time passed between the escape and the end of the episode (and since Claibourne had been running the county for so long, I figured it would take time to deal with him completely), so I decided to stretch things out a bit. It should be clear later on, but I realized it might be a little fuzzy now…so that's just FYI. Carry on! _

- Flynne :)

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– **Chapter Six – **

"**Two Spiders, One Web"**

Luke looked over at his cousin sitting comfortably behind the wheel of the General, a peaceful expression on his face as he watched the dirt road unwinding before them. "Bo, I'm real glad you decided to drive."

Bo sighed deeply. "Yeah. I figured it was a dumb thing to do, bein' scared and punishing myself for something I didn't do. It was a terrible feeling, thinkin' I'd killed somebody…and I ain't gonna forget it any time soon, but I don't gotta let it run my life." He looked at his cousin out of the corner of his eye. "By the way, you didn't fool me none yesterday morning. I knew you weren't doin' as good as you said you were."

Luke gave him a rueful look. "Sorry. Am I that see-through?"

Bo's mouth turned up in a half smile. "No. You just keep forgettin' who knows you better than anyone else. Besides, I know when you do somethin' like that you're just lookin' out for me. I can always tell what you're up to, but that don't mean I don't appreciate it."

"Well, you're welcome," Luke said with a smile. "And I'm glad you're used to it, 'cause it ain't the kind of thing I can turn on and off. I don't think I'll ever be able to quit."

"I don't want you to quit. I wouldn't know what to do with you if you weren't bein' a mother hen."

"Yeah? Well this so-called 'mother hen' whupped your tail the other day—so I'd be careful who you're callin' names if I was you."

Bo snorted. "You just got lucky."

"If that's the case, then I been 'lucky' for the past twenty-six years, Cuz. It ain't lookin' good for you."

"Luke, _you_ are exaggeratin'…and you are just _beggin'_ for a rematch, and I ain't gonna go easy on you!" Bo threatened cheerfully.

Luke scoffed and rolled his eyes, but his sarcastic reply faded on his lips as something in the road up ahead caught his eye and distracted him. "Hey, Bo, check it out." He pointed out the windshield at a green car sitting haphazardly across the roadway up ahead. "Looks like they've got a flat."

"We got time to see if they need help?"

"Sure. Don't take us hardly no time to change a tire."

Bo braked and brought the General to a stop behind the other car. "Hey, Luke, he's under the car," he said, noticing a pair of legs sticking out from beneath the front end. "Wonder if he's got more trouble than just the tire?" The boys climbed out of their car and trudged over to the broken-down vehicle.

"Hey, mister, you need any help?"

"Nope. Just stand right there and put your hands in the air." The man's arm snaked out from beneath the fender, leveling a pistol at the pair of cousins.

"What—?" Luke stared incredulously. "Mister, if you want money, we ain't got much," he stammered, raising his hands in surrender.

"I don't want your money. I'm here for _you._" The gunman slid out from beneath the car and stood up. Luke was baffled as to why this rough-looking stranger would be coming after them, but when he heard Bo's breath catch in his throat, he looked over to see a shocked expression on his cousin's face that was rapidly turning into alarmed recognition.

The man smirked. "Hey, you _do_ remember! I'm impressed. It's been a while, hasn't it, kid?"

"Bo, who is he?" Luke asked in a low voice, not taking his eyes of the armed stranger.

Bo gulped. "He worked for Bulldog Brock."

An icy fist clenched around Luke's stomach as he heard the nearly-forgotten name of the gambling boss for the first time in eight months. "What?"

"I don't know his name, but he was with Brock that night they chased us down on Jessup Road."

The man gave Luke a calculating look. "Ah, so _you_ were the guy that got knocked out of the car! We heard you survived, but we didn't know how bad the damage was. Looks like you made a full recovery." His lips curled in a mocking smile. "Not that it's gonna matter in the long run." He gave an almost imperceptible nod, and a second man who had crept up unnoticed behind the boys lashed out and struck Luke on the head with the butt of his shotgun. He fell without a word. Bo spun around, startled and angry and ready to fight, but the other man's hand was already falling. Bo caught a glimpse of a malicious grin on the other man's face before sparks flew across his vision and the world went dark. He was unconscious before he hit the ground.

Rod looked down at the two fallen young men with grim satisfaction. "Good work, Max."

"It was my pleasure," Max said with a thin smile, spinning the shotgun in his hands. He nudged Bo's motionless body with his boot. "You sure we ain't gonna finish 'em off now?"

"No. Not yet. Claibourne wants to take care of them himself. Just put them in my trunk and help me get the tire back on. Then take their car and follow me. We won't have much time."

**Ol' Bo and Luke sure are popular all of a sudden, but I don't think they're too glad to know it. I ain't surprised that those gambling heavies are after the Dukes—after what happened a while back, Brock's gambling ring got busted wide open and every crooked member lost so much money it'd make Boss Hogg cry—but what I can't figure out is where they came from and why they's helpin' Cassius Claibourne.**

**xxxxx**

"I can't believe it," Daisy said brokenly. Her lovely face was marred by guilt and disbelief. "I told that man right where Bo and Luke were!"

"Daisy, it ain't your fault," Jesse said, putting an arm around her shoulders. "You had no way of knowin' he weren't who he said he was." They were sitting on the couch in the living room while Nate Miles sat across from them, watching in concern. Jesse had come back from the fields looking for his overdue nephews shortly after Daisy and Miles had realized that a trap had been set for them. It had taken only a few minutes to apprise him of the situation, and less time than that for him to realize that his nephews were in serious danger.

He looked over at the inspector. "Mr. Miles, what do you suggest we do?"

"Claibourne can't go many places without being noticed," Miles replied. "My guess is that he's still in Osage County where he's still got power, and I'm betting that's where he's got Bo and Luke. I already called the state police and had them check the prison. They checked all the buildings and questioned the guards and Sheriff Cathcarte—there's no sign of your nephews there. Claibourne hasn't been back since he disappeared, either. I think we should go over to Osage and start looking ourselves…it's a big county, but I don't see any other choice."

"I'm glad you said that, 'cause that's what I was gonna do anyway, and you woulda had to hog-tie me to keep me from doin' otherwise," Jesse said. His bearded face took on a determined look. "Come on, Daisy. Let's get crackin'."

Daisy looked at Miles. "Does your car have a CB?" When he shook his head, she took hold of his arm and tugged him along with her. "Then you'd better ride with me."

"Good idea. Just let me report in and tell my office how to contact me. I'll tell 'em to get some state troopers out on the road, too, and then we'd better hurry. It's almost five now, and it's going to be a lot harder to find them come nightfall."

**xxxxx**

It wasn't a pleasant awakening. Bo could feel every last muscle in his back as it cramped, protesting his first hesitant movement. He was in a very small space, curled up leaning against a rough wall. At first he thought he was getting wet, but then he realized it wasn't water, but sweat that was running down his face.

He dragged his eyes open, looking muzzily around him. He was sitting with his knees up against his chest in a hot, tight little shed. It was so small that he could only move his legs about three inches forward before his boots hit the opposite wall, and the ceiling was so low that not even a child could have stood upright. A single square of harsh sunlight glared down at him through a barred, square window no bigger than eight inches across. He couldn't quite remember, but he knew he'd been somewhere like this before…but he felt so hot and achy and fuzzy-headed that he couldn't quite place…

_Oh, no._

He gasped and a sudden cold shock rushed over him as the memory came back with alarming clarity. It was three months ago that he had been shut in a little shed like this: solitary confinement at the Osage Road Prison.

His heart started to pound. _He's got us. Claibourne's got us._ He didn't know how Brock's men had gotten involved, but with people coming after him and Luke from both sides, he knew they were in big trouble. He wondered if Luke was somewhere nearby and thought about calling out, but he really didn't want to draw attention to himself. He figured someone would come get him eventually anyway, and he had a feeling he wasn't going to like it when they did. So he tamped down his worry and tried to talk himself into believing that Luke was okay.

Bo shifted his weight a bit and tried pushing against the door to the shed. It didn't budge. He had known it wouldn't, but he couldn't help trying. The air was thick and heavy, and even though he could breathe just fine, the feeling of being suffocated was still there. He leaned back against the wall again, panting a little in the heat. His head was throbbing, and he gingerly reached up to touch where he had been hit, relieved when no blood came away on his fingertips.

It was impossible to track the passing hours shut up inside the little shed, but eventually he heard the sound of tires on dirt as a car pulled up and stopped. The square of sunlight in the barred window was darkened as a man approached, and Bo heard the sudden clattering of a key in the lock. The door swung open, flooding the box with bright sunlight. He blinked painfully at the sudden glare, but the rush of fresh air that washed over him was a welcome relief.

"All right, get outta there," the man outside commanded. Bo could see him silhouetted a few feet away, holding a shotgun. He crawled out of the hut as quickly as he could, but it was tough. The pain in his head hadn't lessened, and he was stiff and sore from being locked up in the little space for so long. The heat inside had left him tired and dizzy, and he slumped heavily against the shed's roof as he staggered to his feet. As his eyes adjusted to the late afternoon light, he saw Luke come stumbling out of a second hut about ten feet away.

And standing next to him, holding a shotgun against his ribs, was Cassius B. Claibourne, razor-sharp features hidden behind mirrored sunglasses. Bo was easily two heads taller than the commissioner, but he couldn't quite squelch the nervous twist in his gut at the man's sinister appearance. The invisible glaring eyes were more than a little intimidating…and the loaded rifle didn't exactly soften the image.

"Welcome back to Osage County." His flat, gravelly voice was forced out through perpetually gritted teeth. Across the narrow yard they were in, the mean-tempered deputy, Slater, was herding Luke toward a small, grim-looking brick building. Looking around, Bo discovered that they weren't in the Osage Prison like he'd thought they were; evidently Claibourne liked to build those confinement sheds wherever he thought he might need to keep close tabs on his prisoners. Bo was glad not to be in that barren prison again, but at the same time he knew it meant that nobody would know where to look for them.

"Get movin'," Claibourne ordered, giving Bo a jab with the shotgun barrel.

"I'm goin' already!" Bo snapped. He started walking, following his cousin and Slater into the dilapidated brick building.

The inside of the building was dark compared to the brightness of the sun outside, and it took a moment's blinking and shuffling before Bo and Luke could see clearly. They were in what appeared to be a storage facility about twice as big as the Boar's Nest. The windowless building was full of stacks of wooden crates and dimly lit by aged bare bulbs on the ceiling. Bo felt another jolt of alarm as he realized that Brock's henchmen were waiting inside, seated around a beat-up card table and joined by a third man he recognized from the night of the near-deadly chase. He darted a glance over at Luke. His cousin's face was flushed and covered in a sheen of sweat like his own, but he looked to be all right.

"All right, Duke. Sit down," Slater ordered, gesturing with his shotgun. When Luke just scowled and remained standing, the deputy stepped forward and pressed the barrel against Luke's chest. "I said: _sit down_," he repeated threateningly. "Don't think I won't enjoy puttin' a bullet in you."

Luke reluctantly complied. Slater shoved him toward the wall and roughly pulled his arms back, binding his hands behind him around a rusted metal pipe that stretched from floor to ceiling, part of an ancient plumbing system that had obviously long ago stopped functioning. He pulled out a second length of rope and wrapped it around Luke's chest beneath his arms, pinning his torso against the pipe as well.

Max watched as the deputy started tying Bo in the same way a few feet away from Luke. He rose from the card table and sauntered forward to squat in front of the prisoners, slowly pulling a knife from his belt as he looked at Bo with a spiteful smile.

"Didn't expect to see me again, did ya, kid? You didn't think I'd forget about _you_ did you?" he asked. Bo remained silent, staring defiantly back into the other man's face even as the tip of the knife pressed against his ribs. His heart gave a heavy thump as he felt the cold steel bite through his shirt and scrape his skin, but he forced himself to remain stone-faced and mute, refusing to let the other man goad him into responding.

Max chuckled as he sensed Bo's tension. He smiled gloatingly. "Sure got yourselves in a bind, didn't you?" he asked snidely. "Bet you never expected Rod would toss that poor sap in front of your car." Bo turned a shade paler before his face tightened in anger, looking past Max to fix his stunned and accusing gaze on the gambling ringleader.

"Max, will you _shut up_?" Slater snapped. "You talk too much for your own damn good." He tightened the rope around Bo's chest sharply enough to make the young man wince.

"Aw, it don't matter much now, does it?" Max drawled. "They ain't gonna be able to tell anyone what they hear." He narrowed his eyes and pressed nearer, watching to see if Bo would flinch as he twisted the blade closer against his side.

"I don't know who you are, mister, but you'd better back off of him," Luke said warningly.

Max laughed. "You ain't exactly in a position to tell me what to do, friend." But he stepped back and put his knife away, rapidly growing bored of trying to torment someone who didn't betray his fear.

Slater gave Luke's leg a sharp nudge with his steel-toed boot. "You keep your mouth shut, Duke," he ordered.

Luke looked up at the deputy with open hostility. "Whatever you say, _'sir'._" There was no mistaking the contempt in his voice.

"I remember you had a mouth on you," Slater sneered. "When you call me 'sir', you better mean it!" He stepped forward and lashed out, kicking Luke sharply in the side. Luke gasped and flinched from the painful blow, but bound to the pipe, he couldn't get away.

"Hey! Stop!" Bo shouted, face turning red with anger as the deputy kicked his cousin again. "Dangit, Slater! Leave him alone!" Bo lunged against the ropes that held him, furious but powerless to intervene.

Slater kicked Luke a third time, wringing a strangled cry of pain from his prisoner. He spat on the ground by Luke's feet and turned his back, leaving him panting as he sagged against the ropes.

Bo glared daggers at the deputy. "What kind of yella-bellied coward are you to kick a man when he can't fight back?"

Slater turned to Bo with a snarl. "Don't you _ever_ call me a coward, boy!" He raised his hand and struck him across the face.

"That's enough, Slater." Claibourne didn't speak loudly, but the tone of command in his voice was unmistakable and the deputy stopped and backed away, looking at the white-haired man with a mixture of annoyance and grudging respect.

But Bo was still mad and he turned his anger to Claibourne. "There weren't no call for him to go beatin' on Luke like that! You shoulda stopped him!"

Slater started for him again, but Claibourne waved him back. He regarded the pair of cousins for a moment before grating out, "It ain't none of your concern when I decide to give my orders. And don't act like you don't deserve to be here. After all the trouble you caused, you had to know it would only be a matter of time before I got my hands on you."

"Well, you got us now," Bo said stonily. "What are you gonna do with us?"

"Nothing—as far as the public is concerned," Claibourne replied. "You see…I didn't even know you boys were here. You had an unfortunate accident two days ago that you blamed me for, so you broke your probation to come snoop around in my county. Everybody knows you Dukes have a reputation of pokin' your noses where they don't belong." He shook his head in false pity. "Too bad you boys tried to burn down my building in the middle of the night…by the time anyone saw the fire and realized you'd been trapped inside, why…it was too late to save you."

Bo's chest grew tight, and he stared aghast at the iron-faced commissioner. "You wouldn't!" he forced out.

For the first time, the granite-hard features cracked in a chilling smile. "I would. And I will." He turned and started walking toward the door.

"Nobody'll ever believe we tried somethin' like that!" Luke called after him angrily. "You'll never sell anyone that story!"

"You'll never live to find out if I do!" Claibourne said savagely. "You've got about eight hours, boys. That's plenty of time to think of all the things you could've done differently the last time we met." He stared back at them for a moment longer before he disappeared out the door. Slater and the three gamblers followed him. The door closed with a resounding bang, and the Duke boys were left in the dark.

"Luke, are you okay?" Bo immediately asked, anxiously trying to peer through the gloom. The building wasn't completely black—a sickly red glow came from an EXIT sign flickering fitfully above the bolted door—and as his eyes adjusted, Bo could see his cousin where he was tied a few feet away.

Luke took a long, slow breath, testing his abused ribs to see how much they hurt. "Y-yeah, I'm all right," he said quietly. "I'm hurtin', but it's goin' away. Nothin' too bad."

"He just remembers what happened the last time he and his thugs tangled with us," Bo fumed. "He's afraid to take you in a fair fight."

"Believe me, if I had a fair go at him, I'd take it."

"_I'd_ bet on you."

"I appreciate that, but it don't help us right now." Luke shifted uncomfortably where he was pinned against the pole, giving the dying EXIT sign a dirty look. He didn't appreciate the irony.

Bo shivered. It was considerably cooler in the storage building than in the hot little solitary confinement shed. The iron pipe behind him was sending chills up his back, and the concrete floor was cold beneath him. His shirt had been damp with sweat, and now it was cold and clammy against him. He was also terribly thirsty, but he knew there was no chance of relief. Even if he had bothered to ask for water, he knew their captors would have just laughed at him. Then he heard Luke take a sudden shuddering breath as he felt the chill of the dark room and he knew his cousin was feeling as bad as he was.

"Luke, what are we gonna do?"

"You got me. You got any wiggle room at all?"

"No. Slater tied me so dang tight it's a wonder I can still breathe. There ain't a chance I can get loose."

"Me neither." Luke sighed and shook his head. "Guess we just have to wait for someone to find us."

Bo didn't answer. He knew as well as Luke that Claibourne was too smart to be caught easily. And with the help of Rod and his crew, well…there didn't seem to be much they weren't capable of. If they were hidden, they were hidden well. It would take time to find them…and there wasn't much time left before the building would start burning down around them.


	7. Flashpoint

_Thanks a million to GrayWolf84, who was my second pair of eyes and a huge help reading this chapter and chapter eight over for accuracy! Her help and advice let me fill in gaps I didn't see and made playing with fire a lot more fun. (Heehee…) Um. Fire on the computer, not real fire._ :P _The management would like to state that playing with real fire is dangerous and belongs on the list of Don't Try This At Home. (Go to a friend's house.) _;)

_(My sarcasm is going to get me in trouble some day, I know it…)_

_I know it was a little longer between updates this time…but between five finals, two midterms, and upcoming spring break,_ _things got just a teensy bit hectic. It'll be a little longer between chapters this time, too, but chapter eight is almost on deck…just let the world spin around a few more times and we'll be good. _

- Flynne :)

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– **Chapter Seven – **

"**Flashpoint"**

Hour after uncomfortable hour dragged by for Bo and Luke. They spoke little, but spent the time vainly trying to loosen their bonds. Their efforts gradually slowed and stopped as their arms cramped and their fingers grew numb, and they sat in exhausted silence with their painfully stiff backs against the iron pipes, wrists rubbed raw where the rope had burned them. They could tell it was getting late but there wasn't a sound from outside, and in spite of their discomfort they found the heaviness of sleep encroaching on the edges of their minds.

**Now, I thought for sure those boys woulda got themselves loose by now, but they couldn't. It ain't too often that Bo and Luke can't find a way out of a tight spot, but if they're gonna do it, they better do it soon…'cause right about now is when things are fixin' to squeeze a whole lot closer.**

Bo's eyes suddenly snapped open in alarm as he heard the sound of wheels crunching on gravel outside. He could pick out the sound of two cars, and one of them was as familiar to him as the sound his own voice. "Luke, you recognize that engine?"

"Yeah. It's the General." Luke felt his heart start beating a little faster. "I guess we're supposed to have parked it outside before we torched the place."

The door suddenly creaked open and a bright flashlight beam cut through the darkness. Bo looked away as the light hit his face. "You gotta point that thing right at me?" he growled.

Slater snickered. "No." The beam stayed where it was. Claibourne had come in behind his deputy. He stepped behind Luke and surprised the young man by cutting the cords that bound him. Slater saw Luke tense suddenly as if to fight and drew his pistol, leveling it at Bo's head. "Don't get any funny ideas, Duke, or I'll blow his brains out. You just sit still and don't move."

Luke immediately froze. "Okay, I am!" he said quickly. He blinked in confusion as Claibourne used a thinner rope to re-tie his hands behind his back—they weren't wrapped around the pipe this time—and then tied his feet together. He did the same thing to Bo and stepped away, brushing the dirt off his hands with an air of finality.

"Don't do this, Claibourne," Luke said.

The commissioner smiled cruelly as he heard the undercurrent of fear in Luke's stern voice. "You did it to yourself." He turned and walked to the back of the warehouse, disappearing between the tall stacks of wooden crates.

"You're insane!" Bo shouted after him. "If you'd left us alone instead of—"

"That's enough out of you!" Slater snapped. He gave Bo's shoulder a firm shove with the sole of his boot. Bo had no leverage now that his arms and legs were tied, and he fell back against the concrete floor with a grunt.

Bo and Luke exchanged an alarmed glance as a red-orange glow suddenly flared from the back of the building with a _whoomph _and the first hint of smoke drifted past them. Claibourne re-emerged from the gloom, giving his prisoners one last, unforgiving stare. "Goodbye, boys." He gestured to Slater and the two of them disappeared. The sound of the door slamming closed echoed throughout the building, disappearing into the sound of the rapidly spreading flames.

"Bo, quick! Roll over towards me!" Luke ordered tightly. Bo obeyed instantly, stopping as he felt his back press up against his cousin's. He held as still as he could as he felt Luke's hands start tugging at the cords that bound him.

**Now, that's more like it! Better work fast, Luke…**

"Why'd he untie us like that?" Bo wondered aloud. "He had to know we'd be doin' this the minute he was gone."

"He planned it that way," Luke said, voice heavy with concentration. "He couldn't take the chance that we'd be found tied to those pipes. It wouldn't look like an accident. These ropes'll burn away quickly…and if his plan works—if anybody finds us, they'll just see us in the middle of the floor…or at the door tryin' to get out." He gritted his teeth in frustration as his fingers fumbled clumsily with the knots, stiff and tingling from his hands being tied for so long. "Dang it! He tied it so tight, and this rope is so thin I don't think—"

"Keep tryin'!" Bo said sharply. "Just slow down…you can get it, Luke, I know you can."

Luke forced himself to take a long breath—but it didn't do much to calm him when he felt the harsh touch of smoke in the back of his throat. He blinked away the cold sweat that was dripping into his eyes. When he finally felt the stiff rope begin to loosen, the heat of the blaze had already raised the temperature of the room, and the sweat beading on his temples wasn't caused by his anxiety.

"You got it!" Bo suddenly exclaimed. He wrenched his arms against the rope and felt it fall away with a rush of relief. He immediately swiveled around and untied Luke's hands in a flash.

"What d'you think our chances are of gettin' out that door?" Bo asked, reaching for the rope around his ankles.

"Knowin' Claibourne, slim to none," Luke replied grimly. He untied his own legs and jumped to his feet, reaching down to give Bo a hand up. "But come on, we've gotta check it out." They ran over to the door, wishing rather than believing it would open. Bo reached for the doorknob, but he immediately jerked his hand back when he felt the startling warmth of the metal handle.

"What?" Luke asked in confusion.

"It's hot!" Bo examined the palm of his hand. The doorknob hadn't been quite hot enough to burn him, but it _had_ caught him by surprise.

Luke tensed. "Hot like there's a fire on the other side, too?"

Bo looked frightened at that possibility, but he carefully reached out to rest his palm against the metal door. "I don't think so…it's cool over here, but…" he slid his hand along the smooth surface. "It's only hot on the edge of the door right here and around the handle."

"Well, why…?" Luke leaned closer, straining to see in the dim light. He ran his fingers lightly along the edge of the door, and his eyes grew hard as he realized what the problem was. "Bo, this door's been welded shut!"

**Uh-huh. That there is one last dirty trick from Cassius Claibourne. He done welded that door shut from the outside before he and Slater drove away. Somebody oughta tell him you're only s'posed to do that to racecars.**

Bo set his face determinedly, putting his hand on Luke's arm to move his cousin out of the way. He braced himself and rammed his shoulder against the door with a _wham_ that echoed off the brick walls.

"Bo…"

"What?"

"_Pull_."

Bo rolled his eyes. "I know! But I can't shake the door hard enough by tugging on it! Lemme whack it and see if I can rattle it enough to crack the seam."

Luke gestured his cousin forward. "Whack away!"

Bo flashed him a little smile and threw himself against the door again. Luke stepped up to help him, but it took only a few hits before the cousins realized it wasn't going to do any good.

Bo shook his head in defeat and backed away from the door, rubbing his sore shoulder. "Ow."

"Yeah, don't hurt yourself."

"You see any other way outta here?" Bo asked, looking fearfully around him.

"No," Luke replied with a sinking heart, "but we're gonna look anyway. Come on." He turned and started feeling his way along the wall. Bo kept one hand on Luke's back as they started their sweep of the building—he didn't want to lose track of his cousin in the dark.

The red-orange light from the fire grew brighter as they explored the building, though…and they grew more afraid as they realized the door Claibourne had used had been their only way out. There were no windows, no ventilation ducts low enough to reach or big enough to crawl through, and the smoke was rapidly thickening, curling down from the ceiling in dark billows.

"Luke…?" Bo's eyes were wide as he looked for some sign of reassurance in his cousin's face. He didn't see it.

"I don't know what we're gonna do." Luke replied, voice already going hoarse from the smoke.

"Wait!" Bo suddenly clapped his hand on Luke's arm. "The only place we ain't looked is back where the fire started! What if…?"

"What if there's a way out back there that Claibourne didn't want us to get to?" Luke finished, eyes brightening with sudden hope. "Good thinkin', Bo! Come on!"

They darted to the back of the building, crouching low as they tried to stay beneath the smoke. They knew crawling would be better, but neither of them wanted to be off their feet. When they wove their way between the stacks of crates, they found the rear third of the building ablaze. Both young men were coughing roughly now, struggling to keep their breathing under control in the rapidly souring air. Bo stumbled back involuntarily as the full force of the heat smote him. He blinked his tearing eyes and shielded his face with his arm, straining to see through the wildly flickering glare.

"We were right," Luke groaned. "But there ain't no way we can get through that." He could just barely make out the shape of a door embedded in the brick wall. It might have been unlocked when the fire started, but now it was already warped and melted from the heat, completely blocked off by a wall of flame. As his desperate blue eyes scanned the remainder of the building, he caught sight of the rusty metal drums against the side wall and he immediately backed up in alarm.

"Bo, that's kerosene!" he burst out.

Bo quickly backpedaled, fisting a hand in Luke's shirt. "Come on, we gotta get out of here! When that stuff goes—"

"Get to the far end of the building!" Luke gave his cousin a shove and they hurried as fast as they could through the crates back the way they had come.

They had barely cleared the maze of crates before the kerosene in the first of the battered old drums hit its flashpoint. The roar of the flames suddenly blossomed out in a deafening explosion, and a shockwave of blistering heat flooded out in a rush. The wooden crates closest to the explosion were splintered, and the force of the blast flung debris through the air. The rest of the stacks trembled, and when the next drum exploded a heartbeat later, they tumbled down like a pile of giant building blocks.

Luke felt Bo slam into his back as the explosion flung them forward. A wave of searing heat washed over them, and Luke's vision grayed out as they hit the ground. He dimly felt the impact as debris tumbled over them, burying them completely as they huddled on the cold concrete floor.

**xxxxx**

Daisy's hands tightened on the wheel and her tired blue eyes scanned the side of the road for any sign of a side road or moonshine trail; anything leading to where her cousins might be hidden. It was after one in the morning, but she was too worried to think about sleep. In the passenger seat, Nate Miles held a small flashlight in his mouth while he scanned the map that was open in front of him.

"We've been up and down every road on this end of the county," he said, removing the flashlight to stifle a yawn. "I don't know, maybe we should move on."

"Where else can we look?" Daisy asked. "Uncle Jesse's already on the west end…and you said there's state police helpin' out, too. The more we stay spread out, the more chance of finding 'em, right?"

Miles sighed heavily. "I hope so." Suddenly his brow furrowed and he straightened in his seat. "Do you smell smoke?"

Daisy sampled the air, craning her neck to look around. "Yeah, but…the sky's so dark, I can't see where it's coming from."

"There's hardly any breeze…we can't be too far from it," Miles said thoughtfully. "I don't know what could be burning, though…this is a pretty deserted part of the county. Besides, who would start a fire at one in the morning?"

Daisy tensed and her eyes went wide as a chilling thought occurred to her. "Do you think Claibourne would?"

There was a stunned silence from the passenger seat. When Miles spoke, the flat sternness in his voice sent a fresh stab of fear through Daisy's heart. "Daisy, I think we'd better find that fire _now_."

Daisy took a sharp, cold breath and sped up. She could see the road beginning to rise up ahead, and as Dixie crested the ridge, she slammed the Jeep into park and stood on the seat, turning slowly in a circle as her eyes scanned the horizon. Miles stood up as well, knuckles turning white as he clamped his hand on the rollbar in frustration.

Daisy suddenly tagged his arm. "Miles, look over there!"

Miles looked where she was pointing, off to the left. At first he didn't see anything, but then he noticed with a jolt that the stars were obscured in part of the clear night sky. "I see it! Good eye, Daisy!"

"Come on, we're gonna find out what's over there," Daisy said determinedly. She started her car again and sped on down the road, looking for any way to cut over to where the smoke plume was. She slammed on the brakes, then, nearly speeding past a tiny clearing through the woods. They had missed it earlier, thinking it looked like a dead end…but now that they were nearly due west of where the fire was, she was willing to chance it.

"Hold on to something!" she ordered, spinning the wheel and steering her Jeep into the trees. They ducked low in the seats as tree branches whipped past their heads. Before long, the narrow trail opened up into a winding dirt road, gone unused so long that it wasn't on any maps. By now the smoke was plainly visible, and a dull orange glow was just beginning to show over the trees. While Daisy drove with fresh determination, Miles grabbed the CB to alert the search team of the new developments and call for the volunteer fire department to be roused.

As the dirt road gradually widened, it became clear that they were in fact headed straight for the source of the fire. They rounded the last bend in the road and Daisy gasped as she saw the familiar shape of the General Lee parked in front of a brick building. Part of the roof was ablaze and the thick smoke was sprinkling the area with soot and ash.

"Oh, no! Miles—they _can't_ be inside!" Daisy cried in dismay. She jumped out of her Jeep and ran forward. Miles paused just long enough to update the rest of the searchers on the situation before he ran after her. She had tried the door on the front of the building, but had seen the scorch marks and melted handle instantly and realized it would be impossible to open, and she was already halfway around the back, running as close as she dared to the burning building.

"Daisy, wait!" Miles put on a burst of speed to catch up with her. A sudden deafening explosion shook the air, and he threw his arms around her and fell with her onto the tangled grass as half the back wall of the building blew out in a cloud of flame and shattered brick. He bent over her and covered his head as chunks of smoking brick littered the ground around them. "Don't get so close!" he barked, but the sharpness in his voice was from concern rather than anger. "We don't know what's in there—it could blow again at any time!"

"I'm sorry," Daisy said immediately. "I—I just hoped I could find…" She sat up and looked past him at the fiery ruin, blinking against tears that weren't just from the smoke. Nearly a third of the roof had collapsed, and the small building was riddled with holes and glowing fissures as the dry, brittle brick and mortar crumbled and cracked, no match for the heat and intensity of the explosions. "Miles, if they're in there…"

"The fire department is on the way," Miles said, raising his voice to be heard over the roar of the fire. "They're coming as fast as they can! Now, come on, we've got to get back!" Daisy let him take her by the hand and help her to her feet, following behind as her tearful gaze stayed fixed on the churning fire and smoke. The entire area was lit with a fierce orange glow as a result of the explosion and Daisy knew the rest of the search party would have no trouble finding them now.

_But what if they're too late?_ Her heart ached at the thought, and she forced the bleak whisper from her mind. No, she couldn't let herself think like that! So she stood with Miles a safe distance away while her stomach churned with anxiety, doing her best to believe that somehow, her cousins were all right.


	8. Out of the Ashes

_Order up! Thanks again to GrayWolf84 for all her help with this chapter! Not much else to say here…enjoy!_

- Flynne :)

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– **Chapter 8 – **

"**Out of the Ashes"**

Bo panted heavily, trembling as he strained to dig himself out from beneath the shattered crates and bundles of cloth they had contained. The fall and force of the explosion had left him stunned and knocked the breath from his body, and he had spent several tense seconds struggling to breathe again. Then he had gasped, wincing at the sudden sharp pain that came as he sucked down a lungful of hot, smoky air. Now he was sprawled on top of his cousin on the concrete floor, and he felt a burst of alarm as he realized Luke wasn't moving.

"Luke! Luke, you okay?"

When he didn't get an answer, he gritted his teeth in determination and squirmed out from beneath the smoldering debris that covered them. He realized the cloth bundles were actually old prison uniforms, and he said a quick prayer of thanks that they hadn't been hit with the spare car parts that lay scattered on the ground.

As soon as he was free of the rubble, the heat of the fire hit him again full force. The fierceness of the flames had redoubled now that the kerosene had fueled it, and half the room was engulfed, dark red brick rapidly streaked with soot as the flames licked their way against the walls. Bright trails of flame snaked across the floor where the flammable liquid had spilled. The roof groaned and cracked above him—a large section had been obliterated in the blast, and flaming chunks were still falling to the ground in bright streaks.

Bo grabbed hold of the splintered boards and tossed them out of the way, shoving the last of the debris away. He uncovered his cousin and carefully turned him onto his back. He was relieved to see no signs of bleeding, but when he reached for Luke's neck to feel for a pulse, his hands were shaking so badly that he couldn't be sure what he felt. An ugly bruise was rapidly forming on the side of Luke's head where he had struck the concrete floor. Bo leaned down and pressed his ear against Luke's chest but he couldn't hear anything over the cracking wood and the muted roar of the fire. "Luke, don't do this to me! Come on, talk to me!"

The last words were torn out of his chest by a sudden fit of coughing as the curling black smoke worked its way into his lungs. Still kneeling on the floor, Bo looked up at the rusty sprinkler system that hovered mockingly over his head, dry as a bone. He could tell that most of the back wall was gone, but the pile of rubble and towering flames barred them in as if it were a steel door. He could feel the heat from the approaching flames like an oppressive fist trying to crush him to the ground.

_Pow!_

Bo gasped and ducked at the sudden crack that shattered the air. His first thought was that they were being shot at, and he immediately bent low over his cousin to shield him, although he knew it would do little good. _As if it ain't enough for them to burn us alive!_ he thought with bitter fury. But when the sharp staccato rang out again and no bullet plowed through him, he risked a glance over his shoulder.

_Pow!_ A shower of sparks and concrete chunks exploded up from the dusty floor beneath the kerosene spill, pitting the concrete with an inches-wide crater as stone projectiles whistled through the air.

Bo covered his head with his arms and bent over Luke again, flinching as he felt the stinging blows through his shirt where the tiny missiles struck him. The chunks from the spalling concrete had been small and had come from far away, but he could tell bigger pieces would seriously hurt if they struck him from close range. He had to get out of the open. Bo quickly slid his hands beneath Luke's arms and pulled him across the floor, behind one of the few remaining shaky stacks of wooden crates so he would be safe, at least temporarily.

**Well, you can't fault ol' Bo for tryin', but bein' stuck between a brick wall and a raging fire don't exactly give him the option of "safe".**

"We ain't gonna die in here. You hear me, Luke? We ain't gonna die!" In spite of his defiance, Bo could feel cold talons of fear sinking into his heart. His breaths became shallow and quick, exacerbating his cough from the smoke. _God, what am I gonna do? Help me!_

He raised his eyes to the darkened ceiling searching for an answer he didn't think he'd find—but then he gasped and stared hard through the smoke as a spark of hope blazed up in his heart. There were several dark patches there that he hadn't noticed before, spaced at regular intervals between the rafters. They weren't windows, were they? No, they couldn't be…the room had been pitch black all day…but now that he'd seen it, he couldn't ignore it.

He scrambled to his feet and climbed up the unsteady stack of crates he had taken shelter behind. The top of the stack was just a few feet below the ceiling, and then he could see it wasn't a window or an access door, but a skylight. The glass had been thickly covered in black paint long ago, blocking daylight and camouflaging it from view…until now.

Bo rolled to his back on top of the crate, raised his arms to shield his face, and bashed the heel of his boot against the thick glass: once, twice, three times…the glass cracked, and on the fourth blow it shattered with a tinkling crash. He snaked his hand through the opening and groped outside for the catch. His searching fingers found it, and with a sharp tug, he opened the latch and pushed the broken skylight open.

Bo struggled for breath between deep, harsh coughs. The stack of crates had started burning, and they were running out of time. He half-jumped, half-fell to the ground, stumbling dizzily as he landed. The smoke was thick and heavy near the ceiling, and the lack of oxygen was making him disoriented and light-headed. He ran back to where he had left Luke. "Come on, buddy. We're gettin' out of here." As gently as haste would allow, he hauled his cousin off the floor and slung him across his shoulders in a fireman's carry. "You're lucky I'm bigger'n you are," he grunted, staggering a bit beneath Luke's solid weight.

**Ya know, it's times like this that I bet Bo's pretty glad he spent four years as a linebacker on the Hazzard High football team.**

Sweat trickled into Bo's eyes as he started climbing the stack of crates again. The heat from the flames was blisteringly hot, and his lungs were burning as he climbed up into the acrid smoke. He was coughing raggedly and his eyes were watering, but he could still see the skylight yawning open above him.

The stack of wooden crates suddenly shifted beneath him as the base was finally eaten through by the flames and started to crumble. Bo grabbed onto the skylight opening, gritting his teeth as he struggled not to fall. His shoulders cramped as he leaned forward to keep Luke's dead weight from sliding off his back. With a sudden surge of strength, he pulled himself to the top of the heap and stood up, lifting his head and shoulders out into the cool night. He gasped in relief as the clean air hit his face, pausing only for a second before tensing his arms to lift Luke over his head and onto the flat roof.

There was a sudden loud crash from below as the stack of crates swayed, and Bo barely had time to throw himself through the skylight as the crates collapsed beneath him. His torso stretched across the roof as his legs dangled above the fire below. He dragged himself up and out of the building as the flames licked at his boots, and collapsed in a heap beside his cousin. He was trembling with exertion, but he knew he couldn't stay still. Already he could feel the roof growing hot beneath him.

Bo lifted himself up, slid his hands beneath Luke's arms once again, and started dragging him to the edge of the roof—and not a moment too soon. He hadn't taken ten steps before the roof shuddered and an additional fifteen square feet caved in, sending the remainder of the shattered skylight plummeting into the inferno below. Bright tongues of flame spiked through the opening into the night, and a great plume of smoke billowed out over the roof.

He reached the edge of the roof, wondering fearfully how in the world he was going to get down. There was no ladder or fire escape, and Luke was still unconscious—there was no way he could shimmy down with his cousin on his back. He thought he would just have to drop Luke down and jump after him. Even though the building wasn't too tall, the fall would be long enough to hurt…but right then it looked like his only option. Any injuries they might incur would be better than being burned alive.

But then he looked down, and in a rush of amazement he saw a slew of flashing red and white lights, and a handful of volunteer firemen rushing toward the building. He had no idea how they had gotten there, but at that moment it was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. Two firefighters lifted a ladder and propped it against the building while a third man ran up the ladder and jumped onto the roof.

"Give him to me," he said, gesturing at Luke's limp form. His voice was calm but laced with urgency, and his motions were hurried as he bent and lifted Luke's body to his shoulders. He paused just long enough to rest his gloved hand on Bo's arm. "You okay to come down by yourself?" Bo could only nod in reply, trying to recover from the uncontrollable coughing that shook his body. He waited just long enough for the firefighter to get down the ladder with Luke, then swung over the edge and slid down the sturdy rungs to the ground. He stumbled a few steps away from the building before his strength gave out. He dropped to his hands and knees, chest heaving as he struggled to breathe through a throat that had grown tight and dry.

Two firefighters came alongside him and took hold of his arms, lifting him from the pavement and guiding him to the ambulance that waited nearby. A white-jacketed paramedic was waiting to meet him and helped him sit down on the ground behind the ambulance.

"Come on, son," the middle-aged man said, kneeling beside him. "Take it easy. My name's Dale—I'm here to help you." He gently placed an oxygen mask over Bo's mouth and nose. "Give me your hand. That's it, hold that mask on your face. I know it hurts, but try to breathe as deep as you can. Just sit there for a minute while I check you over, okay?"

Bo lifted his head and gave the attendant a desperate look. He let the oxygen mask drop as he struggled to speak. "I—my—c-cousin…L-Luke—" He broke off as another bout of coughing rattled him.

Dale settled the mask back over Bo's face. "My partner, Harry, is taking care of him inside the ambulance," he answered. "Don't worry. He'll be all right."

"You're sure?" The anxious inquiry came out as a croak, but Dale understood.

"I'm sure." The paramedic patted his shoulder reassuringly. He put his stethoscope in his ears and slid the bell beneath Bo's shirt on his back, brow furrowing as he listened to the young man's strained efforts to pull in a full breath.

"Bo!" He looked up in surprise to see Daisy come pelting towards him with Nate Miles and his Uncle Jesse—who had arrived only moments before the fire crew—hot on her heels. She stopped breathlessly in front of him, wide blue eyes anxiously scanning her cousin's soot-covered face. "Honey, are you okay?" Bo nodded wearily. The adrenaline rush had rapidly drained from his body, leaving him feeling tired and worn out.

"I don't want him talking just yet," Dale put in, draping his stethoscope around his neck. "He took in a good amount of smoke. He just needs to breathe right now."

Daisy swallowed hard, looking over her shoulder at the burning building. The rest of the roof had caved in, and white plumes of water hissed against the flames. Great gouts of steam and smoke billowed into the night sky. She looked fearfully at Dale. "There was someone with him," she said in a trembling voice. "Our cousin, Luke—"

Bo lifted his free hand and pointed toward the ambulance. The back doors were closed. Dale reached out and closed his hand around Bo's wrist, glancing down at his watch as he took his pulse. "I told Bo—Luke's going to be all right," he said to the anxious family. "My partner has him in the rig. He'll let you know how things are when he's finished taking care of him."

Miles was looking darkly back at the decimated building, clenched fists buried in the pockets of his denim jacket. His face was lined with deep suspicion as he saw the rope burns on Bo's wrists, but he remained silent. Bo felt the detective's scrutinizing gaze on him, though, and he knew there would be plenty of discussion later about what had happened.

Just then, the back doors of the ambulance popped open and a stocky young man climbed out.

"Harry, this here is Luke's family," Dale explained. "They're a mite worried about him. How is he?"

"Well, he hit his head pretty good and he's feelin' a little groggy right now, but he'll be fine. He remembers where he is and what happened to him." The young paramedic smiled. "He's been askin' about you," he said to Bo. "Wants to make sure you're safe." Bo felt an overwhelming surge of relief wash over him and he slumped forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Well, come on, young man," Dale said, nudging his shoulder. "Better go show your cousin that you're not hurt." He looked at Daisy and Jesse. "We'll take 'em over to the community clinic to make sure they're all right. They'll need to be observed overnight to make sure they don't develop any complications from sucking down all that smoke, but they should be able to be discharged tomorrow. I hate to say it, but visiting hours are over by now—the staff will want you to come in the morning."

Jesse nodded. "We understand." He briefly touched Bo's cheek with the back of his hand. "I'm glad you're all right, son."

Daisy took his face in her hands and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. "You and Luke keep an eye on each other, okay?" She did her best to give her younger cousin a brave smile and walked away with her hand tucked through Jesse's arm. Miles gave him a serious nod before he drew away, following Daisy back to her Jeep.

Dale and Harry helped Bo stand up and climb into the back of the ambulance. The older paramedic went up front to drive while Harry settled Bo on a padded bench beside the gurney where Luke was stretched out.

The dark-haired man was lying on his back, a dark bruise spreading across his temple. Half of his face was obscured by an oxygen mask like the one Bo wore, but his eyes were open, and their blue depths lit up with relief when he saw his cousin. He immediately extended his hand. Bo gripped it tightly, a smile working its way across his face for the first time that night.

"Good to see you in one piece," Luke said, voice muffled by the plastic covering over his mouth and nose. "I'd get up, but I'm still waitin' for the world to stop spinnin'. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm—" Bo broke off suddenly as his throat spasmed, and he winced as a dry, hacking cough burned through his chest so abruptly it made his eyes water.

Harry leaned forward to make sure Bo was going to keep holding the oxygen mask on. "He took in a lot of smoke," he explained. "We don't want him to talk much just yet."

"Sure." Luke turned back to Bo. "Thanks for pullin' me out of there," he said quietly. Bo just nodded and gave Luke's hand one final squeeze before letting go. He was suddenly grateful for the coughing spell—his stinging eyes were still watering, and it concealed the tears of relief that were threatening to spill over.


	9. A Matter of Leverage

– **Chapter Nine – **

**"A Matter of Leverage"**

**Well, ol' Bo and Luke had a rough start to their night, but it ended up all right. Bo didn't mind stayin' in the clinic too bad…it was just a little bit of a place, but there was still a real pretty nurse that came to check on 'em. Ever notice things always seem to work out that way?**

**They spent the night in Osage County, and Jesse and Daisy came to pick 'em up before lunch. Detective Miles came over a few hours later—he didn't get a chance to question the boys last night, and you know he's gotta hear the whole story. Right now they're sittin' in the living room, talkin'. We'd better listen in, 'cause I don't think we wanna miss this conversation.**

"…and then he went to the back of the building, started the fire, and left us," Luke finished. He was sitting on the couch between Bo and Daisy. Bo had a bit of a lingering cough and both their voices were still rough from the smoke, but other than that, the boys had bounced back hardly the worse for wear from their close call the night before.

Miles' face darkened in anger. "I wish I could say this shocks me—but Claibourne's been building a nasty reputation for so long, I don't have any trouble believing he tried to kill you like that. And as for those solitary confinement sheds, the state has been trying to get him to get rid of those for years. Those are what get him accused of abusing his prisoners."

"I don't like knowin' Cassius caged my boys like that," Jesse growled.

Daisy looked a bit puzzled. "But I didn't see any sheds when we got there."

"He destroyed them when he was done with them," Miles said. "We found them smashed up and piled against the side of the building. I guess he hoped they'd be burned up with the rest of the building, but the fire department got there before it happened." He turned back to Bo and Luke. "You boys really are lucky we found you in time. If it weren't for Daisy, I don't think we would have found you until it was too late."

"Well, it ain't for nothin' we started callin' this little lady 'Bo Peep'," Jesse said with a smile. "She's been lookin' after those two Lost Sheep cousins of hers ever since she first laid eyes on 'em." Bo and Luke both smiled at that, and Luke reached out to squeeze Daisy's hand.

Nobody saw the fleeting troubled look that crossed the young woman's face. _Yeah, and if it weren't for me, Bo and Luke wouldn't have gotten into that mess in the first place._

"What I wanna know is how Brock's goons got caught up in all this," Bo said, reaching down to scratch Fender's ears. The dog had greeted Miles enthusiastically, happy to see a face he was beginning to know, but now that everyone was getting serious he had sat down on the floor at Bo's feet, resting his head on the young man's knees.

Miles looked at him in astonishment. "What did you say?"

"I guess we forgot to tell you that part," Bo said. "The guys that nabbed Luke an' me…we'd seen 'em before. Leastways, _I_ had. We ran into some trouble with Bulldog Brock last year, and some of the same guys were helpin' Claibourne. I think one was called Rod and the other one was Max, but I don't know more'n that. There was another fella there, too. I don't know his name, but I could pick him out of a crowd if I saw him."

Miles whistled and shook his head. "Boy, when you guys put your foot in it, you _really_ put your foot in it, don't you? Do you remember the first day I met you I told you Claibourne had been up to the usual dabbling in crime that we've come to expect from him?"

The two cousins exchanged a look. "Yeah," Luke replied slowly.

"Do you remember I said gambling was one of those criminal activities?"

"I don't remember that part, but I got a feeling I should have."

"We've been monitoring Claibourne's contact with A.J. Brock's gambling ring for a couple years. We knew he'd been mixed up with him somehow, but it wasn't until Brock was arrested—here in Hazzard, in fact—that we got any solid evidence of their connection. A lot of the major gambling cells over Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee have been dismantled, thanks to the arrest—" He broke off as the last piece of the puzzle finally fell into place. "The attempted murder charge that got Brock his jail time," he said in disbelief. "It was you two, wasn't it?"

"Sure was," Bo replied. "That was a close one…he woulda gone to jail for murder instead of just attempted murder if Fender here hadn't stopped him."

"So when Claibourne decides he wants to take us out, he calls on the nastiest characters he knows to help him out…because they both wouldn't mind a bit if they saw me and Bo dead," Luke finished.

"What happens now?" Daisy asked, slipping her arm through Luke's to lean close against his side.

"Now…we try to find them," Miles said. "We've got an APB out on Claibourne and Slater, and I'll make sure we get one out for Rod Young and Max Granger. I have a feeling the third man you saw might be Greg Snyder, Bo. He's known to associate pretty closely with Young. We'll do our best to find them, but we don't have much to go on, here. There's a lot of places Claibourne could be hiding…he and his men could be out of Osage County by now."

Luke paused briefly before asking, "Well…they'll still be after me and Bo, right?"

"They're not the kind of men who give up easily," Miles replied.

"And we don't know where they are…"

"No."

"Well, then…" Luke took a deep breath. "'Round here, if we want the coons to come out of the trees, we gotta leave the lid off the trash can."

"Uh…Luke?" Bo raised his eyebrows. "Are you thinkin' what I think you're thinkin'?"

"I think so."

Miles looked from one cousin to the other and back again. "Either of you think you might clue me in?"

"It's me and Bo they want…so give 'em a chance to get us. Set a trap for 'em, and we'll be the bait."

"Luke, no!" Daisy protested. "You can't do that! Honey, those guys tried to kill you!"

"I know—which is why we know they'll try again. But we'll be ready for 'em this time."

"I don't like this idea, either," Jesse broke in. "I don't wanna see you boys puttin' yourselves in danger."

"We're _already_ in danger, Uncle Jesse," Bo pointed out. "This way, we're just…" He groped for the word. "…in _controlled_ danger," he finished finally. Luke rolled his eyes and Bo gave him a sheepish smile, knowing how lame his words sounded.

Jesse snorted. "'Control' never had nothin' to do with you two," he groused.

Miles, on the other hand, had been thoughtfully silent. "It might be worth a try," he said slowly. "I hate to see you two putting your lives on the line—again—but if it works…"

"…We'll all sleep a lot better at night," Bo said with a nod. "We'll do it."

"I still don't like it," Daisy said unhappily.

"Don't worry, darlin'! Luke and me will be okay."

"Yeah, that's what you said before those guys hauled you off and tried to kill you!" she countered.

"Daisy…" Luke shifted on the couch to put a reassuring arm around her shoulders. "Really, it'll be fine. We'll know to watch for 'em now…trust us, we'll get 'em this time."

"I'll make sure they've got a bodyguard with them at all times," Miles said, giving Daisy and Jesse an earnest look, trying to ease their anxiety. "I've got a good friend that I'll recommend. He's done this kind of work before. Bo and Luke will be in good hands."

Jesse spent a long moment gazing at his nephews before he sighed heavily and gave in. "All right. We'll try it."

Miles smiled determinedly. "Good. Now, let's get a map of the county and I'll tell you how this is going to work."

**Miles decided that he'd have Bo and Luke hole up in an old hunting cabin on the edge of Hazzard County with one of his friends stayin' with 'em as a bodyguard. Then he'd let their location slip out, hopin' that Claibourne would hear about it and be lured into givin' away his position—which would hopefully give the state police a chance to catch him before he could make a move on the boys again. **

**It was a pretty long shot at the start, but anything was better'n waiting for Claibourne and the gamblers to strike again. Even if the ol' bait-and-switch plan didn't work, at least Bo and Luke would be safe for the time being. In case y'all forgot, Miles is still tryin' to bring Claibourne to trial…and you can't have a trial if you ain't got witnesses. One thing's for sure, though: _Claibourne_ ain't forgotten about that.**

**xxxxx**

Five days had gone by since Claibourne's storage building had been burned to the ground, and the white-haired commissioner was getting angrier with every day that passed with no news on the Duke boys' whereabouts.

"You'd better not be coming here to tell me you came up empty again, Slater," Claibourne threatened as his deputy walked in the door. "I know those boys didn't vanish of the face of the planet. You've had five days to look for them. Now, _where are they?_"

"They're still in Hazzard County," Rod broke in, sauntering in with his thumbs hooked in his belt. "We found them."

Claibourne looked up with fierce interest. "Good! At least _someone_ around here is worth what I pay them," he said cuttingly, giving a significant glance at Slater.

The deputy frowned angrily. "Well, I ain't seen _you_ out there lookin', Claibourne!"

"Shut up, Slater," Rod said, shooting him an impatient look. "That doesn't matter. What matters is we know where they are."

"Let's go get 'em, then," Claibourne said, rising to his feet.

Rod's face darkened in a scowl. "You know, Claibourne, for someone who's been in power as long as you have, you sure are stupid! You idiot, can't you see that's exactly what they want us to do? Detective Miles is too good at what he does to let an information leak like this slip out. We were _meant_ to find them."

Despite his anger at being insulted, Claibourne wasn't so dumb that he wasn't going to listen. "So what do you suggest, since you seem to have all the bright ideas today?" He spoke softly, but there was a dangerous undertone in his voice that promised retribution if his arrogant hired gun didn't have a plan to match his insolent words.

"They tried to trap _us_…so we're going to trap _them_," Rod replied. "I've got an idea."

**I ain't so sure about _this_ one, y'all. I'd feel a whole lot better if it was Luke comin' up with the plan instead of this nasty fella.**

**xxxxx**

"Daisy Duke, how many times have I told you to keep my office door _closed_?" Boss scolded. "You're gonna be the death of me!"

Daisy rolled her pretty blue eyes as she loaded empty beer glasses onto her tray. "Oh, for heaven's sake, Boss! We're closed, the doors are all locked, and you got the entire Hazzard County police department here in the Boar's Nest! I don't think you got anything to worry about."

"Easy for you to say!" Rosco countered. "That mean ol' snake, Cassius Claibourne, ain't got you in his sights! Why, poor ol' Boss only ate _half_ his hog jowl pizza, and the quiver in my liver has been jostlin' my stomach so much I ain't been able to eat hardly nothin' either. Besides, how would _you_ feel if your life was in danger and all you had was Enos to look out for you?"

"I think I'd feel pretty good," Daisy said, giving the deputy a wink and a smile where he stood by the door.

"That's right nice of you, Daisy," Enos said with a grin.

The bartender waited until Daisy had moved behind the counter with him on her way to the kitchen to wash out the beer mugs. "Remind me what the situation is here?" he asked, looking in amusement at the three fidgety officials.

Daisy smirked and stifled a laugh. "Oh, Boss is being ridiculous. He thinks Cassius Claibourne is gonna come after him after what happened three months ago, so he's got Rosco guarding him. But Rosco was there, too, so _he's_ got Enos guarding _him_."

Jerry rolled his eyes. "Well, at least I won't have to worry about a speeding ticket on the way home tonight." He glanced at the full tray in her arms. "Look, why don't you just leave those by the sink? I'll finish up. You go on home…it's almost two-thirty, and I know you had a rough week."

Daisy smiled gratefully up at him. "Aw, thanks, hon! You let me know when I can return the favor for you, okay?" She pushed through the swinging doors into the kitchen and deposited the tray on the cluttered counter before making her way into the closet where she and the other employees left their things while they were working. Five minutes later, short shorts exchanged for jeans, she picked up her purse and headed for the door.

"Night, Daisy!" Jerry called after her.

"Night! Sleep tight, Boss!" she said over her shoulder. She didn't stay to listen to the muffled ranting from behind his office door as the pudgy commissioner moaned about how he'd never be able to sleep with a madman after him.

Enos stepped aside and opened the door for her as she left. She smiled up at him in thanks. "Enos, honey, will you lock the door behind me?"

"Sure thing, Daisy. Drive safe, now!"

Daisy slipped her jacket on and reached into her purse to dig out her keys as the door to the Boar's Nest swung shut behind her, the firm _click_ of the dead bolt sliding into place the only sound in the quiet night outside. She took three steps toward her Jeep…

It was as far as she got.

The moment she moved away from the building, a thick arm snaked around her throat and a huge hand clamped over her mouth. She gasped and tried to scream, but her voice was muffled and the man behind her tightened his arm threateningly around her windpipe.

"Not a sound, girlie!" a harsh voice hissed in her ear.

Daisy shook her head stubbornly and fought back, tugging at the man's arm and thrashing against the crushing grip. Her heart raced with fear as he began dragging her toward a car. She brought her spike-heeled shoe down hard on his foot and he cursed angrily, stumbling in pain. For a moment, Daisy thought she might be able to break free—but she stilled immediately as her captor lost patience and pulled out his pistol to press it behind her ear.

"Now, are you going to hold still the easy way or the hard way?" he threatened.

Daisy nodded her head in defeat, looking desperately back toward the Boar's Nest in the vain hope that Enos would hear something and come to investigate. A second man emerged from the car and stepped forward to tie her arms firmly behind her back. They pushed her roughly into the back seat of the car. The man who had grabbed her slid into the back seat beside her while the other man started the car and drove away.

"Whatever you're tryin' to do, it won't work!" she said angrily, forcing confidence she didn't feel into her voice. "As soon as they realize I'm gone, they'll—"

"I'm gonna tell you this once, and only once," the shadowy figure beside her said, speaking over her protests. "Shut up and stay quiet. You're alive now, but we don't need you to stay that way, so don't do anything to make us angry and you won't get hurt."

Daisy had no choice but to do as he said. She turned her face away and rested her forehead against the cool window. Hot tears stung her eyes and blurred the view of the sleeping countryside as the car picked up speed. She couldn't see her kidnappers' faces, but she had a pretty good idea of who they were—and she knew they were going to use her against Bo and Luke. She wasn't afraid about what would happen to her…but her cousins loved her every bit as much as she loved them, and she knew they'd do anything to keep her safe.

That thought was enough to terrify her.

**xxxxx**

The phone jarred Bo out of a sound sleep at 3:00 AM. He rolled out of bed and hurried down the hall in his pajama pants. He picked up the phone, holding the receiver to his ear with one hand while he pawed at his mussed blond curls with the other. "Hello?" He blinked and squinted in the sudden glare as Luke entered the room and turned on the lights.

"_Duke?" _

His forehead furrowed slightly and a chill ran through him as he heard the low voice on the other end. He didn't recognize the voice, but he could recognize the sound of trouble when he heard it. "Yeah, you got Bo, here."

"_We know where you are, boy…and we know what you're trying to do. It won't work."_ Bo took a breath, trying to think of some way to answer, but he didn't have an opportunity to speak before the man on the other end of the line continued, saying: _"We've got your pretty little cousin."_

"_What?"_ The word burst out before Bo could stop it. His heart was pounding inside his chest, and he darted a frantic look at Luke.

"_You heard me. So in two hours, you and Luke are going to walk to the Wedgewood crossroads. You'll be on foot and you'll be alone. If you do as I say, the girl will live. If you don't, she dies."_

Bo swallowed through a suddenly dry throat. "How do I know you'll keep your word?"he forced out.

"_You don't."_

**-click-**

Bo slowly lowered the phone from his ear, staring at the receiver as if it had bitten him.

Luke had stood by with an increasingly growing knot in his chest. He had seen Bo's face go from confused to shocked to alarmed in a matter of seconds, and he knew he wasn't going to like what he was about to hear. "Was that who I think it was?" he asked slowly.

"Yeah." Bo looked up, tight-lipped with anger and worry. "They've got Daisy."

**Well, shoot. As if this whole mess weren't bad enough, now _Daisy's_ in trouble! I sure do hate that. You know Bo and Luke are gonna try to save her, but it seems as if that troublesome ol' Duke luck has raised it's head again…and we all know that makes those boys about as lucky as a two-footed rabbit.**


	10. In the Line of Fire

_Next chapter! Updates have been slower because of that wonderful little thing called spring break,_ :) _but I'm back at school now, so _hopefully_ the last couple chapters will be posted more quickly than the previous chapters. Thanks for your feedback and your patience!_

- Flynne :)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

– **Chapter Ten – **

"**In the Line of Fire"**

Luke stared at Bo in dismay as his younger cousin rapidly told him about what the man had said on the phone. "Oh, no."

Bo slammed his fist against his palm. "I can't believe we were so stupid! Here we're bein' chased by these guys, and we don't even think anything could happen to Daisy or Uncle Jesse! We shoulda made sure they were taken care of."

"'Trust us', I told her," Luke said bitterly. He looked up in sudden alarm. "Hey, we better call Uncle Jesse and let him know to keep a sharp lookout. We can't have them getting to him, too."

"What happened?"

Bo and Luke jumped, startled by the voice that came from the hallway. They had briefly forgotten about the police officer who had been sleeping in the other room down the hall. Despite the abrupt awakening at such an early hour, Dave Bryant looked awake and alert. He was already dressed, eyes sharp as he sensed the tension in the room.

"We just got a phone call from one of Claibourne's men," Bo said grimly. "They said they have our cousin Daisy, and if we don't meet 'em in two hours, they'll kill her."

Bryant looked worried. "Are you sure about that?"

"We ain't had time to call anybody," Luke confessed. "The Boar's Nest closes at two, so if she was workin' tonight, she'd already be home." He grabbed the phone and rapidly called the farmhouse, startled when Jesse snatched up the phone on the first ring.

"_Enos?"_

"No—no, Uncle Jesse, it's Luke," he stammered.

"_Luke! I was just gonna call you boys," _Jesse said. _"Daisy didn't come home tonight—Enos said she left the Boar's Nest around 2:15, but Dixie's still there. He's out lookin' and I'm waitin' for him to call, but we're afraid that…"_

Luke's heart sank. "I know, Uncle Jesse. We just got a phone call from one of Claibourne's men." Uncle and nephew quickly filled each other in on their ends of the story, and neither felt any better for it afterwards. Luke hung up with a promise that he and Bo would be careful and that they would get Daisy back.

"I take it you boys are planning to meet these men like they asked?" Bryant questioned, following the cousins back to their room.

"We ain't got a choice," Bo said tightly, throwing on his clothes. "It's because of us that Daisy got mixed up in this whole mess."

"Bo, it's nobody's fault—"

"Maybe so, maybe not, but we're gonna get her out of this!" Bo finished stubbornly.

Bryant's face darkened in a troubled frown. "You boys are forgetting—I know you're worried about your cousin, but you're government witnesses, remember? The state of Georgia needs you alive to testify against Claibourne when we get him to trial. I can't let you run off to get yourselves killed."

"No matter what happens to us, you'll still have a witness when we get Daisy back," Bo said. "She helped us out back at Osage Prison, and after tonight you know she'll have some dirt on him. Uncle Jesse, too. Besides," he finished with a smirk, "me and Luke ain't in the habit of dying."

"If you go alone, you won't come back alive," Bryant said seriously. "You've seen that these people don't play games. And once you're dead, there's nothing to keep them from killing your cousin." _If she isn't dead already,_ he thought darkly to himself. But he wasn't going to voice that possibility.

"We'll meet 'em when and where they wanted," Luke said, stomping his feet into his boots, "but Bo and me…well, we ain't never been too good at following directions." He smiled grimly. "We're gonna need your help. You up for it?"

Bryant hesitated, looking uncertainly between the two cousins as he thought. He would be walking a fine line between helping them out and protecting them, but the firm resolve he saw in the two pairs of blue eyes fixed on his face was beginning to convince him. Besides, the boys were already pulling their jackets on, and he knew it would take more than one man to stop them. So he sighed and gave a resigned smile. "Okay. But will you at least let me call Miles first to let him know what you're up to?"

Luke clapped him on the shoulder. "Go right ahead. Do it fast, though…we gotta hurry."

**Now, that's more like it! I always feel better when I know ol' Luke's got a plan cookin'…I just hope he don't get burned.**

**xxxxx**

Daisy came awake with a start as she heard the sound of a door opening. She gave a little gasp and shook her head—she hadn't meant to fall asleep, but it had been a hard week and a long shift, and once she'd been shut in the dark little room, her exhaustion had caught up with her.

She looked up warily to see Claibourne standing over her, gazing down at her dispassionately. "It's time to go," he informed her.

Her face hardened as she glared at him. "I'm not goin' anywhere! I won't be your bargaining chip against my cousins." She locked eyes with him, refusing to be intimidated even though he was looming over her, seated on the floor, bound hand and foot.

"You already are," Claibourne replied coldly. "They've already agreed to meet us." He bent and cut the rope around her ankles. "Now, get up."

Daisy pushed herself farther into her corner, and set her jaw stubbornly. "No!"

Claibourne's flat expression didn't change. He turned and beckoned to someone Daisy couldn't see, and a moment later, Max and Snyder came into the room.

"Stop! No, I won't go! Let go of me!" Daisy cried out, struggling as the two big men bent and lifted her from the floor. She did her best to wrench away, but her efforts were futile. Max and Snyder quickly got tired of fighting with her and lifted her from the ground completely to carry her out of the ramshackle old house they had been staying in, depositing her roughly in the back of a blue van. The doors slammed closed behind her and Daisy was plunged into darkness again.

She immediately rolled to her feet and pressed her back against the door in an attempt to find a handle, but either there wasn't a way to open the door from the inside, or her bound hands were just too clumsy to find it.

Then the van started up with a growl and she fell to her knees as the vehicle gave a lurch and drove away. She leaned against the door, fighting back tears of frustration as a growing feeling of despair took hold of her heart. It wasn't enough that she had unwittingly given Claibourne's men the information they needed to abduct her cousins the week before—oh, no, she had only made things worse by her carelessness that had given them an opportunity to get their hands on her. She had no doubt that Claibourne had been telling the truth—Bo and Luke _were_ going to meet them—and she had no doubt that the commissioner and his men would kill them the first chance they got.

**Folks, I sure hope the Dukes find a way outta this one. It's bad enough for sweet Daisy bein' held hostage, but it's gonna be even worse for her if somethin' happens to the boys, 'cause you know she's gonna be blamin' herself just like Bo and Luke are blamin' themselves right now. Those Dukes share everything between 'em, but it ain't a good thing when what they're sharin' is guilt.**

**xxxxx**

The eastern horizon was just beginning to turn gray with the first hint of dawn as Bo and Luke climbed out of the General Lee to walk the last mile to the Wedgewood crossroads. It was twenty minutes to five. They hadn't slept since the phone call at three, busy contacting the state police and Nate Miles, filling them in on the situation and what they had in mind. Now they were loping along a narrow dirt road lined by still, silent woods, hearts thumping nervously.

"Stay close to the trees," Luke cautioned. "They said they'd be at the crossroads, but there ain't no tellin' if they'll be waiting to bushwhack us along the way."

"I don't think I like that possibility," Bo said with a grimace, drifting closer to the treeline. He tugged the zipper up a little farther on his jacket as a cool breeze slipped under his collar. His brow furrowed worriedly as he half-jogged, half-walked alongside his cousin. "Luke…do you think they'll really bring Daisy?"

Luke's jaw clenched. "I don't know," he admitted. "They never said they'd bring her, did they? They just said she'd live."

"So there won't be much chance of findin' her if we…" Bo's voice trailed off. He wasn't going to say the word "die" out loud. His handsome face grew stern with determination. "Daisy's worth the risk, though," he said firmly.

Luke just gave him a tight smile and a nod. "Come on. We'd better pick up the pace a little if we're gonna make it there in time."

Dawn broke as the cousins finished their short trek. The orange and pink sunrise was splashed against the sky, sharply silhouetting the black trees against the glowing horizon. Bo and Luke had drawn further into the woods as they approached, hoping not to be seen until they had gotten an idea of what was waiting for them. They saw a dark blue van sitting still and silent by the side of the road, and two figures could be seen inside the front seat.

Bo took a deep breath. "You ready for this, cousin?"

Luke nodded. "Let's go."

**xxxxx**

Daisy had tried to keep track of how far and fast they'd driven. When the van finally came to a stop, she listened tensely as she heard the doors slam and felt the vehicle jostle as somebody—or somebodies—climbed out. She waited nervously, wondering if her captors would come to get her, but the footsteps faded, and for several minutes she was left alone in the dark, empty compartment. Then she heard the doors slam again, and gravel crunched underfoot as two men came around to the back of the van. She took a deep breath and crouched low as the back door opened.

The moment she saw daylight, Daisy lunged forward—but Rod and Claibourne were right there. Rod caught her as she came flying out, wrapping his arms around her and laughing derisively as she struggled against him.

"Whoa there, little lady!" he said. "You're a feisty one, aren't you?"

"Quit struggling, Miss Duke," Claibourne said sternly. "You give us a hard time, and your cousins are going to have a _very_ hard time."

Daisy stopped fighting with a gasp and looked toward the trees. Bo and Luke were slowly emerging from the woods, hands raised in surrender. Both Claibourne and Rod had their guns drawn.

"Bo, Luke, don't!" she pleaded.

"It's okay, Daisy," Luke said, steady blue eyes fixed on her face.

"Just you keep on coming, boys," Claibourne instructed. "And don't try anything funny. Max and Snyder are around here someplace watchin' you, and it won't be no trouble for them to shoot you in your tracks."

"We'll come with you," Bo said. "But first you let Daisy go like you promised."

"Just keep walking," Claibourne repeated. "She'll be taken care of."

The Duke boys kept advancing until they were a few feet away from Daisy and the two criminals.

Daisy met Bo's eyes and mouthed, _I'm sorry_.

His face softened in concern and he gave his head a little shake. _Not your fault._

"We're here," Luke said firmly. "Now let her go."

But nobody would ever know what Claibourne and Rod had planned to do next, because right then, the situation spun wildly out of control.

The peaceful silence of the woods was shattered by the sound of gunfire. The two criminals started in surprise, and for a fraction of a second, they took their eyes off of their prisoners. Bo and Luke were no less surprised, but they reacted instantly. Bo threw himself at Claibourne, knocking the commissioner back against the open van door while Luke jumped forward, shoving Rod away from Daisy.

"Daisy, _go!_" Luke ordered sharply, staggering back as Rod took a swing at him.

Despite her determination not to leave her cousins at the mercy of armed criminals, Daisy obeyed. Luke's voice brooked no argument—and she knew she'd be of no use with her hands bound behind her. Shots were still being fired back from where Bo and Luke had come, so she bolted past the van into the woods in the opposite direction—but she didn't run far. The stubborn young woman would obey her cousin's order, but only as much as she saw fit. She ducked behind a tree and turned fearful eyes back the way she had come.

Luke had knocked Rod's gun away, but Claibourne had held onto his, and now he had the muzzle pressed against Bo's temple. Luke instantly backed away from the fight, raising his hands in surrender once again as Rod grinned triumphantly, bending to retrieve his discarded weapon. The gunfire from the trees abruptly stopped, and Daisy's eyes widened to see Snyder running toward the van, unarmed, cradling a bloody arm against his chest.

"Someone was with them!" he gasped. "They hit me—Max is dead!"

Claibourne turned to Bo and Luke in cold fury. "Get inside!" he ordered. Daisy watched in horror as her cousins disappeared into the van. Claibourne raised his firearm. "Last time I made the mistake of not finishing you off when I had the chance," he said with a vengeful snarl on his face. "I won't make it again."

Two gunshots ripped through the air.

"_No!"_

Daisy didn't realize she had cried aloud until the three men by the van wheeled to face her. She could tell they had caught sight of her, but the next instant they spun to face the opposite direction as they heard a commanding voice shout out, telling them to freeze—but they weren't about to be caught flat-footed again. Claibourne slammed the back door closed and ducked around to the driver's side. Rod and Snyder jumped in after him and the van roared away. A man darted from the cover of the trees, firing after the van in an attempt to hit the tires, but he was too late. Five seconds later, the road was empty and quiet. Daisy's soft crying was the only sound that broke the silence.


	11. I'm Not Quite Dead Yet!

_I was having a little trouble coming up with a title for this chapter…but then this idea popped into my head and I couldn't resist. I _almost _didn't include it because I thought it might be a wee bit silly, but in the end I decided just to go for it. _:D

_Many thanks to GrayWolf84 for her excellent beta work!_

- Flynne :)

------------------------------------------------------------

– **Chapter Eleven – **

"**I'm Not Quite Dead Yet!"**

**(Subtitle: "I'm Getting Better!")**

Daisy dropped to her knees beside the tree, leaning weakly against the rough bark as tears ran down her face. Her fault…it was all her fault. If only she'd paid more attention when she was leaving the Boar's Nest!

"Daisy?"

She jerked, startled to hear her name spoken close by. She looked up to see a fair-haired man in a dark jacket bending over her.

"It's all right, Daisy, you're safe now. I'm a police officer," he told her, reaching behind her to untie her hands. She looked at him warily before she saw with relief the badge pinned to his dark blue jacket. "My name's Dave Bryant—I was staying with Bo and Luke. They asked me to follow them here to back them up and make sure you'd be all right."

Daisy rubbed her sore wrists as Bryant helped her to her feet, taking a deep breath to try and ease the pain in her heart. It didn't help. "He shot them!" she said in a quivering voice, fighting to keep from breaking down completely.

"I know." Bryant put an arm around her shoulders and walked with her back to the road. "Don't give up hope, though—we couldn't see inside the van—we don't know what happened…"

"It doesn't matter," she said. "They're gone! Even if Bo and Luke are still alive, once Claibourne gets where he's going…oh, this is all my fault! I didn't even _think_ they'd come after me! If I'd been watching, I could have called for help, Enos would have heard me, they wouldn't have been able to—!"

"Sweetheart, calm down!" Bryant said. He gave her a firm but gentle shake. "It's not your fault. They don't blame you—you're their cousin, you should know that."

"I know they don't blame me," Daisy replied, "but it doesn't help." She closed her eyes and swallowed hard, regaining control of herself. When she looked up at him again, her blue eyes were swimming with tears, but they were filled with determination. "We're goin' after them," she declared. "I'm not letting those men take my cousins from me."

"The General Lee is about a mile down the road," Bryant said. "Once we get there, we can call for help to organize a search."

"We'll call for help, but we don't need a search," Daisy said. "I know where Claibourne and the others were hiding out."

The officer looked at her in surprise. "You do?"

Daisy nodded briskly. "I recognized the place when they carried me from the cabin to the van. I can show you how to get there."

**Daisy sure is somethin', isn't she? Even though she's scared and hurtin', she's got her head together. That's one amazing girl, y'all. I'm sure glad Bo and Luke managed to save her…I just hope it ain't too late to save _them._**

"Good girl!" Bryant encouraged. "Come on, we've got to get back to the car!" Daisy jogged alongside the police officer as they hurried back down the road. Bryant had brought a two-way radio with him, and he pulled it out and flipped it on as they moved.

"This is Bryant calling Officer Walsh. You out there, Ted?"

"_I read you, Dave. What's happening?"_

"Miss Duke is safe, but Bo and Luke are in trouble." Bryant quickly told his fellow officer what had transpired.

"_What do you want us to do?"_

"Daisy and I are heading back to the Dukes' car now. The keys are inside. Have one of your boys pick it up and drive up to meet us."

"_Yes, sir. We'll see you in a few."_

"What's going on?" Daisy asked.

"Bo and Luke didn't come alone," Bryant explained. "Like I told you, the General is about a mile down the road, but I've got four cars and eight men two miles farther down. Your cousins wouldn't let them get any closer because they didn't know how much surveillance Claibourne would have and they didn't want to spook him until we knew you were safe, but my men been ready and waiting in case we needed them."

By the time Daisy and Bryant had run three-quarters of a mile, they saw the General Lee coming up around a curve, followed by four police cars. Daisy headed straight for the General and waited impatiently for the officer who was driving to slither his way awkwardly out of the window and rejoin his partner in the patrol car.

Bryant climbed into the passenger side of the General and picked up the CB. "Okay, everyone, you're gonna follow Miss Duke. No sirens unless you get the okay from me—we want to catch these guys."

Daisy slid nimbly through the window into the driver's seat. "Hold on, sugar!" The General took off in a cloud of flying dust, leading the four police cruisers down the winding road like an orange kite on a string.

**Now, ain't that a sight? It ain't often you see the General gettin' chased by police cars without tryin' to shake 'em.**

**xxxxx**

Cassius Claibourne drove with grim determination. A glance in the side mirror told him he wasn't being followed and he allowed himself to slow down a little as he navigated the winding dirt road. Beside him, Snyder was gritting his teeth in pain as Rod bound up his wounded arm.

"Did you see who hit you?" Rod asked.

Snyder shook his head tightly. "No. Max did…He said it was a cop and started shooting."

Rod turned blazing eyes on Claibourne. "A _cop_?"

"Relax," Claibourne growled. "There's nobody behind us. Even if they do figure out where we've gone, we won't be there when they arrive. We're just stopping long enough to pick up Slater before we dump the bodies."

"_Relax?_ I just lost a man, Claibourne! You'd better be right."

**xxxxx**

Bo lay motionless on the floor of the van, breathing carefully as the sharp ache in the left side of his chest gradually subsided. It took him several minutes to recover; the force of the bullet had thrown him flat on his back and knocked the wind out of him. He coughed a little, feeling the last of the roughness from the smoke he'd breathed in five nights before. When he'd gotten his breath back, he turned to his right—he couldn't see Luke, but he knew that's where his cousin had been—and cautiously whispered, "Luke?"

"Yeah, right here. I'm not quite dead yet." Luke sat up with a groan, pressing a hand to the painful spot over the right side of his ribcage. "You doin' okay?"

Bo took another careful breath and slowly pushed himself off the van floor. "I'm getting better."

"Boy, am I glad we listened to Miles," Luke said in a low voice. His fingers glided over the ragged hole torn in his jacket, feeling the stiff roughness of the Kevlar vest beneath that the detective had insisted he and Bo wear. The jackets had been meant to ward off the early morning chill _and_ to conceal the body armor, and the pair of cousins were immensely relieved that the extra layer of clothing had served its purpose.

"I ain't never gonna argue with a cop again," Bo vowed. "Well—except Rosco."

"If we're gonna live to argue with him we're gonna need to find a way out of here before Claibourne pulls over and finds out his dead bodies ain't dead."

"Yeah, I know it." Bo cautiously climbed to his feet, gritting his teeth against the fresh burst of pain that came with movement. He figured he'd have a pretty nasty bruise where the bullet had struck, but if that was all that was wrong, he wasn't going to complain. Luke stood up as well, staying low so he'd be able to maintain his balance if the van lurched unexpectedly. The last thing they needed was to start crashing around back there when they were supposed to be dead.

"Luke, what d'you think happened back there?" Bo asked quietly.

"I ain't sure, but I'm guessin' Max and Snyder had something to do with it. Remember how Claibourne said they was watchin' us? I bet they saw Bryant and decided to shoot first an' ask questions later."

Bo's brow furrowed in concern. "I hope Bryant's okay."

"Well, the way Claibourne lit outta there, I'm guessin' he is. I just hope he can find Daisy."

The two young men felt their way to the back of the van's echoing cargo compartment, running their hands over the door wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling. They knew Daisy must have tried, but her hands had been bound—maybe they could find a way to open the door where she couldn't. Luke found the place where the handle had been, but he let out a frustrated hiss as he discovered the door had been tampered with so it no longer opened from the inside.

"Wonder how many times Claibourne's used this van?" Bo said darkly.

"I don't wanna think about that," Luke replied. He ran his fingers up and down the groove where the doors came together. "I wonder…" He pulled his knife off his belt and flipped the blade open, careful not to cut himself in the dark.

"You wonder what?" Bo couldn't see what his cousin was up to.

"Move your hands away from the door. I'm gonna see if I can get my knife in the crack to jimmy it open." Luke slipped the blade between the doors where he guessed the catch might be, but he knew right away it wouldn't work. There was no way a skinny little knife blade would be able to pry open the heavy door lock. He kept at it anyway, though, biting his lip and jiggling the knife handle.

"Aw, it ain't gonna work, Bo," he said finally, withdrawing his knife with a sigh of defeat.

"Well, there's gotta be another way out of here," Bo said, wishing rather than believing it were true.

"I don't know. We may just need to take our chances with Claibourne and the others. They think we're dead, so if we can jump 'em as soon as those doors open, maybe we can surprise 'em enough so we can get away."

Bo suddenly tensed and put his hand on Luke's arm. "I think we're slowin' down." Both young men fell silent and grew completely still. The van had stopped moving.

Slater was already waiting at the run-down house for Claibourne and the others to return, having stayed behind to erase all traces that would indicate they had been there. He came out to meet the van as he heard it pull up and noticed with increasing alarm that Max was missing and there was blood on Snyder's clothing.

"What the hell went wrong?" he demanded.

"The Duke boys tried a double-cross," Claibourne ground out.

"I told you they would, didn't I?" Slater snapped, glaring angrily between his boss and Rod.

"Don't worry," the commissioner said. "They won't be giving us any more trouble."

Slater's eyes narrowed as he caught the implication behind Claibourne's words. "Dead?"

"If they aren't dead now, they will be soon. I shot them myself. They're in the van."

The deputy looked irritated. "Didn't you check?"

"I didn't have time." Claibourne fixed the younger man with a glare through his mirrored sunglasses. "And I don't like all these questions. Just you remember who's in charge here."

Slater pulled his gun out. "I'm checkin' back there anyway. If they ain't dead yet, well…I'll just help 'em along."

Bo and Luke had heard the voices filtering in from the outside, and they waited with thumping hearts, crouched low on either side of the doors, ready to spring out the moment Slater looked inside.

But the doors never opened. They heard a sudden burst of furious swearing and the sound of running footsteps, followed moments later by the wail of a siren, surprisingly close.

Bo felt a sudden burst of hope. "Bryant!"

Luke started to smile. "And I bet Daisy's with him."

The van came to life with a roar and lurched forward. Bo and Luke lost their balance and fell to the floor in the sudden movement, but the sound was drowned out in the sound of the engine and the rapidly approaching siren. They heard another car start up not too far away, and the sound of gunshots as Slater fired at the approaching police cars. Then they were really moving, bracing themselves against the floor as the van jostled over the rough road.

"Man, now I know what popcorn feels like!" Bo grunted, slamming against the side wall.

"Yeah, I can't tell if that rattling is from the van or my teeth inside my skull."

"What rattle?" Bo cocked his head to listen. It was hard to hear over the noise of the engine and the sirens behind them, but he could just pick out a faint rattling that he hadn't heard before. It took him a minute to realize that it was coming from above him, and only half a minute longer before a sudden idea hit him.

"Luke, steady me for a minute. I'm gonna stand up."

"What? Why?" Luke rose onto his knees and felt his way over to his cousin as Bo rose less-than-steadily in the center of the van. He wrapped his arms around Bo's legs to keep him upright.

Bo slid his palms along the underside of the roof. "That rattle you heard…I'm wonderin' if maybe—I found it!" he exclaimed softly. "Luke, the van has a hatch in the roof!"

"You're kidding."

Bo chuckled. "If I'm lyin', I'm dyin'!"

Luke rolled his eyes. "Don't joke around like that just yet, Cuz. Can you open it?"

"Hold on…" There was a pause while Bo felt around the edges of the hatch. He flipped a few of the catches open and gave it a push. "Dang it…it's stuck. Must be latched from the outside, too."

"Let me take a look." Luke let go of Bo's legs and stood up as both of them braced an arm against the ceiling for balance. He thumped his palm firmly on the hatch. It was still snugly closed, but if he pushed on it, there was just a _little_ bit of give… "Stand back, Bo. I'm gonna try something."

**xxxxx**

Daisy leaned harder on the accelerator, speeding up as the winding road straightened out. They had been slowly but steadily gaining ever since the chase began in the woods. The General and the line of police cars had gotten close to Claibourne's hideout before they had been spotted, and it was only after their quarry tried to run that the sirens came on and the pursuit began in earnest.

They were out of the woods now, pursuing Claibourne's van and Slater's car across open ground. It was a tough chase. The criminals were fiercely determined not to be caught, but Daisy knew it was only a matter of time before the General closed the gap.

Bryant was on the CB, keeping close contact with the other four patrol cars and watching Claibourne's van like a hawk—so when a large square object suddenly flew off the roof, his eyes went wide with surprise and he stared for a moment before finding his voice. "What was that?"

Daisy had seen it too, and a sudden hopeful smile broke across her face as she saw Slater swerve wildly to avoid getting hit with the wayward missile. "Bryant, I think '_that'_ was my cousins!"

**xxxxx**

"Woo! Nice goin' Luke! I always knew havin' an ex-boxer in the family would come in handy!" Bo exclaimed with a grin. After just a few powerful blows from Luke, the hatch was gone, and the bright early morning sunlight was beaming through the opening.

"_Dang_, but that smarts!" Luke complained, shaking his throbbing hand.

"You okay?"

"Oh, yeah. I've punched stuff harder than that before…but that don't mean it don't hurt."

A sudden explosion and the screech of twisting metal echoed around the van, and both boys flattened themselves against the wall as a bullet tore its way through the metal divider between the front seat and the cargo hold—the noise from their escape attempt hadn't gone unnoticed, and Rod had realized that their prisoners might not have been as dead as they had hoped.

"Bo, I think it's time we get outta here!" Luke hissed.

"I ain't gonna argue!"

Rod took another shot at them from the front seat. He couldn't see them and the bullet missed widely, but Bo and Luke weren't about to wait for him to get a lucky shot or for a ricochet to strike home.

Luke cautiously edged closer to the hatch. "Gimme a boost and then I'll pull you up."

Bo nodded immediately and braced himself, lacing his fingers together to form a stirrup for Luke to stand on. Although both boys had been crawling in, on, around, and under anything with wheels since they had learned to walk, Luke had an innate sense of balance that his training as a boxer had only enhanced. Bo might have had a bit of an edge driving fast-moving vehicles, but when it came to climbing on them, Luke was the better man.

Luke stepped onto Bo's hands and jumped, catching hold of the open hatch and pulling himself through. It hurt as the badly bruised muscles over his ribs tensed with the sudden motion, but he wasn't about to let the pain slow him down. He rolled onto the swaying roof of the van and caught himself adroitly, lying flat to reach both his arms down into the interior. Bo jumped and grabbed hold of Luke's arms at the same time, and the tug from his cousin's hands gave him the boost he needed to pull himself up and out.

Bo laughed aloud when he saw the string of speeding vehicles behind. "Would you look at that? We're leadin' a parade!"

**Well now, ol' Bo and Luke can finally take stock of the situation! They's on the van that Claibourne's driving, and Slater is right behind 'em in his car. Daisy and the General are comin' up fast, and there's four flashin' and screamin' patrol cars bringin' up the rear. That's quite a start to their day…all that, and it ain't even six in the mornin' yet.**

**xxxxx**

"Bryant, look!" Daisy cried, feeling a surge of relief as she saw her cousins suddenly emerge from the van. "They're alive!" She glanced down at the speedometer and her smile grew broader as she compared her speed to the van's. It was time for the General to stretch his legs.

Bryant looked hopeful but worried. "We're still gonna have to stop that van if we're going to be able to help," he said.

"You don't know my cousins!" Daisy said with a laugh. "Hang on to somethin', honey!"

She laid on the horn and floored it, and the powerful engine's growl lifted to a roar. Bo and Luke looked up as the sound of "Dixie" rang out, and they saw the General smoothly and steadily pass by Slater's car and pull up along the left side of the van.

"Hey, atta girl, Daisy!" Bo cheered her on.

No sooner had the words escaped him than he gasped and flinched, barely keeping his hold on the roof as a bullet creased the metal bare inches from his head. He and Luke glanced back to see Rod leaning out the van window, cursing at the uneven road that had thrown off his aim. He was fumbling now as he tried to get a better position, but it wouldn't be long before he could get off a clean shot.

"Time to bail off this circus wagon!" Luke exclaimed. He cast a calculating look at the General. "Think we can make it?"

"We're gonna have to!" Bo replied. "Go!"

Luke paused just a fraction of a second before he launched himself off the top of the van and landed with a _thump_ right in the middle of the Confederate flag on the General's roof. He instantly slid forward and started feet-first through the passenger side window, pushing aside a startled Dave Bryant. Bo waited a mere heartbeat until Luke was out of the way, took a deep breath, and jumped. He flattened himself against the roof and held on with his arm inside the driver's side window until Luke had made it inside. Five seconds later, he was sliding through the passenger window, breathless and with a racing pulse—but safe.

"Hey there, Daisy!" he said brightly. "Thanks for pickin' us up!"

Daisy flashed a smile over at her two cousins. "Anytime!" She tapped the brakes and started dropping back from the van.

Luke smiled back, but he immediately grew stiff with alarm as he looked out the windshield. "Daisy, look out!" Claibourne had seen what had happened and was making a sudden attempt to sideswipe the General by slamming on the brakes and wrenching the wheel around.

"Hold on, y'all!" A quick glance out the side window showed her that she had room to move, and Daisy immediately swerved off the road. The General jerked roughly as the wheels bounded over the uneven turf next to the dirt road, but Daisy's skill kept the sturdy stock car under control.

Claibourne wasn't so lucky. The cumbersome, top-heavy van fishtailed on the uneven ground, skidded, and tipped over, tumbling three times before it landed on its side, shuddering to a halt with a deafening metallic screech. Slater was too close to avoid it, and his car plowed into the back of the van with a crash.

The four police cruisers came speeding up, surrounding the two battered vehicles in a cloud of red road dust. Four of the policemen crouched behind their doors, guns at the ready, while their partners darted forward to help the criminals out of the tangle of twisted metal. Claibourne and the others were shaken and stunned by the impact, but they were all standing up when they were pulled from the wreckage. Fortunately for Rod, he had been back inside the van when it had crashed, or he would have been crushed beneath it.

The General coasted to a stop. Bryant and Daisy climbed out, followed by Bo and Luke, who were moving just a little stiffly and slowly to avoid unnecessarily banging their bullet-bruised chests against the window frame. They made it out of the car just in time to see the officers handcuff the would-be killers and lead them away. Claibourne gave them a final murderous—but powerless—glare, and then he was out of sight, concealed within the back seat of a patrol car.

"Whew!" Luke let out a long breath and dragged his hand across his brow. "Well, looks like our plan worked after all, Bryant! Turned out a little different than we thought, but—" He broke off suddenly as Daisy threw her arms around his neck, hugging him so fiercely he staggered back against the General.

"Luke Duke, is that all you have to say?" she demanded, voice a mixture of fondness and anger. Luke blinked, startled, as he felt her start to shake with suppressed tears. What was this about? But before he could stammer out a response, Daisy abruptly drew back as she noticed the unusual stiffness against her cousin's chest. "Luke, what…?" She paled as she saw the ragged hole torn in his jacket, but then she noticed the dark bulk of a bulletproof vest. Her eyes cut over to Bo, and her knees went weak with relief as she saw the body armor beneath his unzipped jacket.

Then it hit Luke like a freight train. He and Bo had been so focused on getting out of the van and catching up with the crooks that they had completely forgotten that the last Daisy had seen of them, they had been shot by Claibourne.

"Aw, Daisy…" He hugged her tightly. "Don't cry. We're okay."

Bryant's eyes widened. "Where did you boys get those?" he asked, looking as surprised as Daisy to see the Kevlar vests.

Bo looked sheepish and brushed his hand over the armor beneath his jacket. "Oh…we got them from Miles before we met you at the cabin. When we called him this morning, he reminded us that he'd left these for us and he made us promise to wear 'em. I guess we put 'em on while you was still makin' your phone calls."

"You two took about ten years off me!" Bryant said with a mixture of exasperation and relief. "You should have told me you were wearing body armor."

"That's right!" Daisy still looked upset. "We thought he'd killed you!"

Bo gently put a hand on her shoulder. "We're sorry we scared you so bad, darlin'," he apologized quietly.

"Never mind, honey. I'm just glad you're not hurt. I'd never forgive myself," Daisy replied shakily. She turned to her younger cousin, resting her head on his shoulder as he put his arm around her. Bo frowned a little at her words and exchanged a concerned glance with Luke, but one of the state troopers walked up and broke in before he could speak.

"We're ready to wrap up here, Dave," he said to Bryant. "Bo and Luke, we're going to need you two—and you, Daisy—to come back and give us your statements. Detective Miles is waiting at the Osage Prison. His team went in this morning and arrested Sheriff Cathcarte."

Bo rolled his eyes. "It _had_ to be Osage Prison," he grumbled. "I hate the sight of that place."

"Just one last time, Bo," Luke said, clapping him on the shoulder. "I ain't fond of it either, but if goin' there now means it's the last time I gotta see it, I'm ready."

Bo headed for the driver's seat. "You comin' with us, Bryant?"

The officer laughed and shook his head. "I think I'll ride in a patrol car, thanks," he declined. "If you drive anything like Miss Daisy, I'm better off in another car. I'll see you when we get to the prison, though."

"Ten-four!"

Bo slipped through the window and waited for the police cars to drive away before swinging in behind them—even though they were on his side, it just went against his principles to drive in _front_ of a line of cop cars. Daisy sat in the middle of the front seat, her hand resting lightly on his shoulder while she leaned against Luke's side.

**Well, that was one wild chase, y'all! Looks like it's turned out just fine, though. Bo and Luke weren't hurt after all, and them bad guys been caught by the law. I sure am glad the boys are all right…but you know, I'm startin' to worry that Daisy might _not_ be…**


	12. Patches

_Well, here it is: the last chapter! Thanks to all of you who have read along and left feedback! As always, I appreciate it. And thanks again to GrayWolf84 for beta-ing this chapter for me, and for inspiring me to think of the title. Randa, the collar is for you. _;)

_Updates on future stories will be in my profile, as usual. Later!_

- Flynne :)

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– **Chapter Twelve – **

"**Patches"**

By the time the small caravan arrived at Osage Road Prison, the grim-looking premises had been overrun with police cars. They sat haphazardly around the perimeter and in the yard with their lights flashing, scattered about like toy cars.

Bo and Luke looked around in amazement at the swarm of officers that were sorting through the remaining prisoners, loading them into state vehicles to be transferred elsewhere. The doors to all the barracks were open, as were the row of solitary confinement sheds.

"Wonder what's goin' on here?" Luke said to himself. He and his cousins climbed out of the General, at a loss of what they would be expected to do.

"Bo! Luke!" Nate Miles had spotted the orange gleam of the General right away, and broke away from his position by the office to greet the new arrivals. "I sure am glad to see you safe," he said, shaking their hands firmly. "You too, Daisy."

"What's happenin', Miles?" Bo asked.

"Friends, you are looking at the last day in the history of the Osage Road Prison," Miles replied. "We're shutting it down."

Bo stared. "You're kidding!"

The detective shook his head. "You heard right! This debacle with Cole and you boys was the last straw. From what you've told us about your experience here three months ago, it gave us enough on Sheriff Cathcarte to take him in, too, and after what happened last night, we decided it was time to move in. We raided the place this morning. All these men…" he gestured toward the prisoners, "…will get their records checked and double-checked. They're getting transferred for now. It looks as if most of 'em do belong in prison, but I think a lot were missed back when you boys broke out, so we're going to make sure things are straight."

"I'm sure glad this place is gonna go," Daisy said, remembering how bad it had been when her cousins had been imprisoned there. "Are they gonna tear it down?"

Miles smiled. "Nope. Seems the people of Osage County have had enough of cruelty, and they want to turn this place into something good. They're talking about turning it into a farm camp for underprivileged kids."

"Hey, that's a great idea!" Luke said with a grin. "You tell 'em that if they need any help fixin' the place up, me and Bo will be glad to pitch in."

"Will do. You know, I need to talk to my boss a bit more about this, but I think you three might have a reward coming for your help in apprehending Claibourne and the rest of Brock's gang."

"Aw, Miles, we didn't expect nothin'," Bo started to say.

"I know, but there's no arguing with Uncle Sam. You'll be getting a check as soon as everything is sorted out. I don't know the exact amount, but we've wanted these guys for a long time and I think the state of Georgia will be _very_ appreciative."

"Well…thanks," Luke said. "You know…we got some bills to pay and there's some stuff needs fixin' out at the farm, but…" He exchanged a quick look with his cousins. Bo nodded enthusiastically and Daisy smiled proudly at him.

"We'll donate whatever we got left over to the camp!" she finished.

Miles smiled and shook his head. "You know, I liked you Dukes from the day I first met you, and now I know why. Come on. Let's head on in to the office so I can get your official statements, and then we're gonna get you home."

Bo gave him a bright, relieved smile. "Boy, I'm glad to hear that. 'Home' is 'bout the best word I've heard all week."

**Well, there you have it. Thanks to the Dukes, a real sore spot in Osage County has started healin', and Claibourne and the rest of his crew were sent off to prison for a good long while. Detective Miles made sure Bo, Luke, and Daisy didn't have to stay long, and he got 'em back to Hazzard in time for breakfast with Uncle Jesse, who was relieved and thankful to see all his kids come home safe. **

**Miles also made sure that the charges against Bo were dropped and erased from his record…and even Boss was relieved, even though you'd have to hold a match to his wallet to get him to admit it. Y'all know he's itchin' to get the Duke boys out of his hair—what little he's got left—but he'd still feel bad if it was for somethin' like killin', no matter what he might say. Besides, he was too busy bein' glad that he was safe from Claibourne to stay down about it for long. So everything got fixed up in the end. **

**Well…_almost_ everything. Looks to me like there are just a few more things that need patchin' up… **

Broad beams of golden sunlight slanted over the open fields as the sun started his slow descent toward the western horizon. The warm rays filtered through the thick boughs of the trees before coming to rest on the Dukes' little white farmhouse. The house was quiet and empty inside, and the family was clustered on the front porch in companionable silence after dinner, soaking up the warmth of the dying day.

Jesse was sitting in his old white wooden chair with Luke on the porch beside him, leaning back against the side of the worn piece of furniture. Fender was sprawled on his back across Luke's lap with all four paws in the air. His big brown eyes were shut tightly, and the look on his face was one of sheer doggy bliss as Luke rubbed his tummy. Daisy sat on the porch steps, sewing a small Confederate flag patch over a frayed spot on the back of Fender's bright orange collar.

Bo lounged nearby, his back against a post with his long legs stretched out in front of him, watching Daisy work as he chewed on a long stem of grass. His blue eyes had grown increasingly more thoughtful as the silent minutes drifted by, and he finally took a deep breath and took the grass stem out of his mouth. "Hey, Daisy, can I ask you something?"

Daisy put in the last stitch and snipped her thread. "Sure, honey. What is it?"

"Well…after y'all caught up with us in that car chase this mornin', you said somethin' that's kind of been botherin' me. You said that if Luke or me had been hurt, you'd never be able to forgive yourself. What'd you mean by that?"

Daisy tensed, and she dropped her gaze. "It was my fault, what happened," she said quietly. "I—I wasn't paying attention when I left work that night. I shoulda known better than that…but I had my guard down, and that's why they grabbed me. If Claibourne had killed you…it would've been because of me."

"Daisy…no," Luke corrected gently. "It ain't like that. When they called us, they told us they knew what we were tryin' to do. They wouldn't have fallen for that trap. If anything, _we_ should've known better than to leave you and Uncle Jesse unguarded."

Daisy shook her head. "But—"

"But what Luke is sayin'," Bo interrupted firmly, "is that we ain't gonna talk about fault, because there _isn't_ any. Claibourne and Rod were in charge of all this. They're responsible, and they're payin' for what they done." He waited until he was sure he had her attention before continuing. "Daisy, Luke and me want you to understand something. Now, Uncle Jesse's looked out for all three us all our lives…and you done your share, too, keepin' an eye on the two of us. You're a good sister." That coaxed the beginnings of a smile onto Daisy's sad face, but Bo wasn't finished.

"But even though y'all look out for Luke and me, the way we see it is it's _our_ job to take care of you two. It's like when Luke went into the Marines…he was old enough and strong enough to fight for his country, so he did it. We're doin' the same thing."

"Bo's right," Luke spoke up seriously. "Any sacrifice that's gotta be made, me and Bo are gonna do all we can to make sure we're the ones to make it, and we ain't never gonna have no regrets. You and Uncle Jesse are worth it."

The tears that had been brimming in Daisy's eyes finally spilled over. Bo scooted over next to her to put his arm around her shoulders and she leaned against him, sniffling quietly.

Jesse's faded blue eyes grew misty, and he reached out to rest a firm hand on Luke's shoulder. "I'm real proud of you boys," he said gruffly. Luke reached up to rest his hand on top of Jesse's for just a moment before his uncle let go, but the warmth from the old man's hand spread through him and stayed with him. Fender stretched and yawned, crawling out of Luke's lap to give his pale gold fur a shake. He trotted off the porch and started making a leisurely tour of the yard.

Daisy's tears subsided, and Bo bent his head to peer into her face. "So no more feelin' guilty?" he asked gently. Daisy gave him a little smile and shook her head. "Good!" Bo smiled playfully. "'Cause Luke an' me got jackets in there with holes in 'em that need fixin', and—"

Daisy laughed through her tears, balling up her fist to slug him in the stomach. "Bo Duke! Honestly, you—!" She broke off and threw her arms around his neck. Bo returned the hug, exchanging a relieved smile with Luke over the top of Daisy's head.

**Well, friends, I think _now_ it's safe to say that everything's fixed: Daisy patched Fender's collar, Bo an' Luke helped mend Daisy's heart, and it sounds like the bullet holes in the boys' jackets is as good as stitched up. That's a typical Hazzard ending if I ever seen one.**

A high-pitched whine from the yard caught their attention, and Bo and Luke looked over to see Fender standing next to the General, staring hopefully back at the house. His ears perked up when he saw he'd successfully caught the boys' attention.

"You want somethin', Fender?" Luke called teasingly. He laughed when the dog spun around and sprang into the General, looking back at Bo and Luke with a briskly wagging tail.

"Luke, you think he wants to go for a ride?" Bo asked with a smirk. Fender heard Bo say one of his favorite words, and he let out an enthusiastic bark, recognizing the playful tone in the cousins' voices and knowing it was only a matter of time before his two buddies got off their backsides and joined him in the car.

"You heard him, Bo!" Luke stood up and stretched, digging his keys out of his pocket. "Catch!"

Bo caught the keys with his left hand, pressed Daisy's hand one last time with his right, and hopped up, jogging after his cousin to the General. Fender immediately made room for them and sat down in the middle of the front seat, looking expectantly out the windshield as the engine rumbled to life.

"Hey, hold on!" Daisy jumped up from the porch and ran across the yard, tossing Fender's newly-patched collar through the window.

Luke caught it and buckled it around the dog's neck with a grin. "Looks great, Daisy! Thanks!"

"Anytime, sugar!" She winked at him and stepped away.

Bo waved out the window. "We'll see y'all later!"

"Keep it 'tween the ditches!" Jesse called after them.

Then they were gone, peeling out of the dirt driveway in a cloud of dust and a blast of "Dixie" on the horn. The farm faded behind them as they sped on down the road heading west. Fender sat straight as a soldier in the middle of the seat, a wide grin on his face as the evening breeze rushed through the windows.

"Woo! Hold on, Luke!" Bo tightened his grip on the wheel as the General shot up a rise in the road, hovering in midair for a moment before coming down with a crunch and a shower of dust as the wheels spun against the loose gravel of the road.

Luke laughed with exhilaration. "Where we goin'?"

Bo grinned as the red-orange rays of the sun glinted off his yellow hair. "I ain't got a plan…we're just goin'!"

"Well then, lay that hammer down, Bo! Let's go catch that sunset!"

– **END – **


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